Radiant FLR2s

Anyone who has ever lived or worked in a drafty loft will appreciate the elegant simplicity of Radiant FLR2s. The brainchild of the designers Mary Rickel Pelletier and Mark Colbert, it consists of portable radiant-floor tiles capable of producing energy-efficient warmth for individual workstations. Think of it as a high-tech blend of carpet tiles and a space heater. “This was a reaction to having worked in so many frigid industrial buildings where I had little or no control over the central heating system,” says Rickel Pelletier, who first toyed with a similar idea while working as an adviser to Cornell’s 2005 Solar Decathlon team.

“When Mark and I met last year, we immediately began exchanging ideas on how to develop it,” she says. “His experience with product design, materials, and process, as well as drawing skills, clarified the essential features.” The duo is currently in the process of prototyping Radiant FLR2s. “This carpet-tile system is not some unattainable feat to warm the feet—pun intended—but a repackaging of existing technologies to create what’s smart,” Colbert says, sounding more like a salesman than an industrial designer. “Blue skies are great for flying, but successful products get made!”