LIVINGBOX INTERNATIONAL DESIGN COMPETITION 2005
PREFABRICATED LIVING UNIT
SELF-SUSTAINABLE LIVING UNIT
introduction
According to the increasing of the world population, the global society has been seriously effected. Majority of people migrate from rural area to the city in order to find a career and better living quality. This phenomenal result in overcrowded problem in many
significant cities worldwide.
Architecturally, the increasing of human population isalso automatically results in an increasing number of housing units. Nowadays, most housing are not environmentally
sustainable and not self- dependable. Typically, basic housing infrastructures such as electricity and water need to be provided from sacrificing our environment, such as deforestation to build the dam for electricity, contamination of natural water for our daily living consumption, and returning of waste water to its original location. According to this fact, housing could be considered harmful to the environment. As the rising of human population, the larger number of housing will be constructed and finally result in severeenvironmental crisis. Perhaps, it will be appropriate to rethink of other solution where living unit is self-sustainable ,self-dependable and environmentally friendly. Therefore, Even the population is increasing, environment will not be destroyed, resulting in better living quality for everyone.
Concept
Self-sustainable living unitis designed to create environmentally-safe living condition. The unit is self-dependable, which mean it need not consume contamination of natural resources to produces energy. In fact, clean energy will be created within the unit.
Also, waste material from daily living will be recycle and re-use to produce energy for the building, with out contaminating the environment. The building designing strategy and architectural appearance is radically distinct from typical buildings constructed wolrldwide.
Self-sustainable living unit could be either private resident or public housing. Also, it could become both permanent and temporary housing based on inhabitant intention.
Site: According to the increasing of human population, the city will become overcrowded. People will migrate to the rural area, left over, or un-used land. It could produce it owns basic infrastructure, which mean independent from existing urban context.
Self-sustainable living unit is designed based on this hypotheses. The unit could be constructed in any open site globally. ( however, which the temperature not too severe)
Structure: The unit consists of two major components, which is hard tube metal membrane and soft plastic shell. Both materials are produced from recycle materials including metal, aluminum and plastic, in order to protect the environment.
Transportation: The unit is designed following the concept of metal spring structure. it could be compress to a minimal dimension which will fit on standard vehicle cargo dimension for the ease of transportation. The unit could be delivered via ground and air transportation.
Installation: After the site is selected, the unit could be stretch out from it compress position to a full dimension using spring structure basis. The length of the building could be customized by the adjusting the spring structure with range between 10-30 feet, based on user needs. It flexibility allow the unit to be install in various site dimension, both flat, contour, and step land.
Self-dependable/ clean energy : the unit envelope is made of thin film solar panels, which will transform sunlight to electricity needs for consumption. Rain water will be harvested from the opening void at rooftop and stored within the building skin to provide comfort living condition . Also rainwater will be kept in a pelican tank for a daily consumption of water ( drinking, cleaning, shower, etc.)
Sustainable Living:Plantation will be created on the building surface, and will be use as a food for daily consumption. Electricity is created from solar envelope, and will be use for a daily living (electrical appliance, cooking , lighting, etc.) After consuming and using of clean water, the waste water will be store in a septic tank underneath the building skin. Waste septic will be recycle in a two categories. First, clean water will be refill to the unit and repeat the previous cycle. Second, new soil will be used for a new plantation on the building exterior.
Unit Formations:Thebuilding could beconstructed both as a stand alone studio apartment, or collective urban housing. Units formation could be customized based on inhabitant needs.
Sustainable remains: The unit could be constructed both as a permanent or a temporary structure. For a permanent unit, growing plant could be remove and replant in the surrounding area. For a temporary unit, after abandon, it will deflate and create a new landscape within existing context. This strategy is blurring the line between permanent and temporary housing definition.
Result:
Self-Sustainable living unitwill help safe the environment, reducing the use of natural resources, and providing a decent living quality. It design and made of recycle material which is un harmful to the surrounding both when inhabit or when abandoned.
Self dependable and clean energy strategy considered as a new architectural features
which is distinctive and beneficial.
The building can create various of landscape formation. Its helps develop the new existing open-land, leftover site into a new urbanization context. The Self-sustainable unit
helps alleviate the over density of the city and support future urban sprawl. Regardless of the rising number of human population, the environment will still remain in a proper condition and natural resources will not be wasted. The future generation will be living with higher quality and more sustainable life-style than nowadays.
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