Each year, the Radical Innovation Award highlights unique concepts in hospitality design. Driftscape, submitted by the Toronto office of award-winning architecture firm HOK, is a mobile, self-sustaining hotel delivered by drone.
Courtesy Radical Innovation
Driftscape —
Driftscape can be dropped off anywhere, no matter how remote. It consists of several modular units, including a single guestroom that offers 360-degree views.
Courtesy Radical Innovation
Driftscape —
John Hardy, founder of Radical Innovation, says the award is to honor "qualitative improvements in hospitality concepts and travel experiences for the industry."
Courtesy Radical Innovation
Nesting —
MM Architects, another finalist, submitted a pop-up concept called Nesting, which introduces customizable units which -- like Lego bricks -- can connect and grow.
MM Architects
Nesting —
Nesting could be placed into parks and other underfunded public spaces, and potentially generate income for these areas.
MM Architects
Nesting —
MM Architects also won the Grand Prize in 2012, with their concept Koi, a bridge-hotel hybrid that is currently being considered for development in London.
MM Architects
Space View Inn —
Each year, the Radical Innovation Award also considers a student submission. This year's finalist is University of Nevada student Juan Orduz, which would allow hotel guests to experience microgravity.
Courtesy Radical Innovation
Adaptive Balloons —
Adaptive Balloons, conceived by Yasmin Abdelfattah Soliman of Effat University, won the student category in 2015. These inflatable vinyl balloons are designed to offer refuge to people affected by natural disasters or crises.
radical innovation
Broadster —
Fusing boat, car, cruise and stationary hotel concepts, this movable hub designed by VOA Associates for the 2015 award can float between major ports. Guests would be able to carry out a range of leisure activities while moving from destination to destination.
radical innovation
ROOFtop Retreat —
This 2015 entry, by IDEArc Studio, focuses on underutilized rooftop spaces found in major cities. It envisions the construction of retreat pods and green roofs with premium views, that are enabled through lease agreements with host buildings at a discounted rate.
radical innovation
Canopies —
Submitted by Farhaan Samnani of Southern Polytechnic State University and Kennesaw State University in 2015, this entry is another example that utilizes empty city rooftops. A series of connected geometric domes, the canopies include living spaces, lobbies, gyms and restaurants. The domes are elevated, creating space for landscapes below.
radical innovation
The Living Hotel —
This hotel has an innovate typology that incorporates urban agriculture and biophilic design. The 2015 entry, by Bryan Beerman and Nicholas Wissing of Ball State University is intended to help foster healthy and productive habitats. By growing all its own food, this self-sufficient "Living Hotel" would help promote green living to its guests through a range of education programs, and access to fresh, organic meals.
radical innovation
The Green Air Hotel —
Winner of the Radical Innovation in Hospitality Award in 2014, the design, created by Lip Chiong and Studio Twist was aimed at tackling the challenges of indoor pollution in China. Indoor air quality, according to the Environmental Protection Agency, can be more dangerous than outdoor pollution, due to inadequate ventilation. In this concept, greenhouse gardens woven throughout outdated hotel buildings would act as air filters to remove pollutants in the air.
radical innovation
Zoku —
Zoku is one of two finalists that was shortlisted for the 2015 Radical Innovation Award. Zoku, which is the word for family, tribe, or clan in Japanese, is a home-office hybrid. Hoping to lead the trend in the hospitality industry for hybridized live-work-play spaces, Zoku is targeted at millennials who are self-employed professionals, free movers, and creatives. It was designed by Dutch architecture firm concrete and the UK-based trend forecasting agency, The Future Laboratory.
radical innovation
Snoozebox —
Snoozebox is one of two finalists that was shortlisted for the 2015 Radical Innovation Award. The Snoozebox Event Hotel delivers portable on-site event and festival hotel accommodation. Custom trucks deliver adaptable mechanized-folding rooms that can convert into seven different sleeping configurations. The redesign of the portable hotel room concept was by tangerine.
