Architects and designers are constantly creating innovative designs for disaster relief shelters. In fact, some architects are known for these efforts, such as Shigeru Ban, a Japanese architect best known for his use of recycled cardboard tubing to create disaster relief housing in Japan.
As innovative as the designs themselves, the materials chosen can make the difference between a temporary fix and a long-term solution.
German designer Adrian Lippmann of interior design group form-al created a “tent-like” structure capable of long-term use that is not only waterproof, but fire-resistant. The Fold Flat Shelter is a mini housing unit created using light Dibond aluminum composite material. The designer notes that they have also been made with our sister material, Alucobond®, as well.
Due to its relatively small size, the shelter can be shipped flat and manually assembled on site. With no support system necessary, the structure self-supports its truncated pyramid shape. Every portion of the shelter is useful, including the packaging, which is directly printed with the instructions on how to assemble the structure.
Lippmann states, “A U-section is provided to connect the panels easily and therefore protects the edges. No hinges are needed to fold walls, roof, window or door cutouts. Particular for the swinging door element Hylite® composite is the perfect material.” Hylite® is another of our composite product series out of Europe.
In addition to its lightweight, durability, and easy transport, the 3A Composites materials were chosen for their ease of fabrication. According to Lippmann, “The milling process is very efficient, fast and inexpensive. A modern CNC is able to mill hundreds of shelters a day. The sheets are processed in a way…less than 1% of the material is lost to waste.”
Lippmann concludes, “My prime motivation is to give a large number of needy people a simple but usable home that combines the advantages of a tent with the lightweight building that can be used in the long term. The inhabitants are surrounding by stable walls and thus safe fro fire, rain, vermin, noise, and in the worst case, shrapnel.”
The 3A Composites family is happy to be a part of such an inspiring project.
Information ©2015 Adrian Lippmann
Photography courtesy of designboom