A Brisbane design duo from leading architecture firm Bligh Voller Nield (BVN) are swapping their work clothes for fur coats and ushanka hats.

BVN has been short-listed for Living Steel’s International Architectural Competition for Sustainable Housing, which involves designing 1500 steel houses to be built in Russia.

One of only 12 finalists from around the world, BVN principal Chris Clarke and graduate Joel Kelder are flying to Helsinki, Finland in June to present their design and project submission.

“The aim is for the winner’s design to be built in the town of Cherepovets, which is North of Moscow,” Mr Clarke said.

“The Russian economy is booming, even more than Australia, and the houses will be for the employees who work at a large steel factory that is located in the town.”

Mr Clarke said the biggest challenge they had faced was designing homes for such an extreme climate.

“In Russia the temperature can vary between –45 and +35, a staggering 80 degree variation compared to Brisbane which really only changes about 30 degrees,” he said.

“We’ve spent a large amount of time on the masterplan of the project and looking at where we place the houses to capture as much light as possible in winter.

"By combining key design concepts such as the positioning of the house, the layout, steel materials and insulation we can trap the heat inside.

“Basically it will be like living in a fridge but with the opposite effect – We want to keep the cold out.”

Mr Clarke said whilst neither he nor Joel had ever visited Russia they had been researching by looking at photos of houses and buildings in the colder areas of the northern hemisphere.

“It’s amazing how much you can tell about a culture by just looking at photos and reading the buildings,” he said.

“We’re confident we have a winning submission and are looking forward to presenting it at the conference in Helsinki.”

Mr Clarke said winning the competition would be a huge coup for BVN and could lead to the firm opening a small joint-venture office in Russia or nearby.

“We’d have a team of people working on the project from Brisbane and also a small team based in Europe, which would allow us to become a 24-hour office,” he said.

Chris Clarke specialises in the design of long-span steel structures having been the master architect for Expo 88 and involved in the design of numerous Olympic projects, residential projects and airports – Most recently he was appointed master architect for the Brisbane Airport Corporation.

His love for steel has led him to fashion his own home entirely of the metal, creating not only an architectural marvel but also a house much more sustainable and eco-friendly than the rest of his neighbourhood.

Bligh Voller Nield is a collaborative architecture and design practice which has grown to become one of Australia’s largest and most respected design firms with over 80 years experience.