Main Entrance
The house has been designed to take full advantage of all the characteristics of the beach site at Dungeness on the South East coast of England. By optimizing the passive solar design through advanced thermal modeling and by generating renewable energy on site, ZEF accomplished another carbon-neutral project.

Conceived with a particular focus with respect to sustainable construction, the residence is made of FSC (Forest Stewardship Council) certified timber. Insulation in the walls and roof has been increased, meaning heat loss has been dramatically reduced. Space heating in winter is mainly coming from a wood burning stove.

This dwelling counts as zero-emission because the carbon dioxide it gives off is offset with the amount of electricity generated by a 2.5kW wind turbine. Surplus electricity is directly sold back to the national grid.

El Ray has won the Stephen Lawrence Prize 2009. The announcement was made on Saturday, October 17, at a special awards ceremony for the RIBA Stirling Prize in London. The prize was set up in 1998 to draw attention to the Stephen Lawrence Trust to assist young black students to study architecture and to reward smaller projects and the creativity required when architects are working with low budgets.