Group Members:
Patrick Handrigan
Esteban Poveda
Luca Corazza
Noel Sampson
Fall 2020
The design for this project was focused on paring sustainability and material innovation with community engagement. After researching into local and traditional construction practices surrounding the school's site, we soon realized that the local practice of adobe bricks offered a limited life span due to the polarized climate, and required frequent repairs.. This lead us in the direction of trying to introduce the more resilient construction method of using Rammed Earth. We believed that using this school as ground zero for the community, would offer an opportunity for local construction workers to acquire a deep understanding of the practice that could then be extended on into the surrounding community.
This process of material research then became a crucial part of furthering our design, as each construction material was chosen based on its ability to enhance the sustainability of the design, minimize the cost of construction and maintain resiliency to the elements.
Bamboo:
Bamboo is one of the world's most sustainable and cost-effective building materials. Within Senegal, bamboo is a readily available resource, thus, it was important to us to create a design that would pay homage to the natural landscape. Based on its high compressive strength and its long lifespan, our proposal deploys bamboo within a strategic ventilation system that will both maximize circulation and minimize noise pollution.
Rammed Earth:
Rammed Earth is a cost-effective and energy-efficient construction practice. Its lifespan exceeds hundreds of years and its environmental footprint is minimal. We propose that our project should rely on rammed earth as one of its primary construction materials.
Water Collection System:
With an extensive dry season, water can become a scarce resource. We have sought to solve water scarcity in the dry months by taking advantage of the wet ones. With a 23,000 litres concrete tank, rainfall landing on the roof of the school will be captured and diverted through a network of gutters towards the tanks. While this water is obviously not safe to drink untreated, it will be able to be used for watering the garden and cleaning classrooms, to name a few.
Tin Roof and Bamboo Damper
Senegal faces an intense wet season, therefore, protection from the elements can’t come at the expense of the integrity of the learning environment. Tin alone proves to be sufficient in keeping heavy rainfall out, however, the acoustic reverberations caused by rainfall on exposed tin is disruptive in the classroom. That’s why we propose to line the underside of the roof structure with an insulated layer of bamboo strips to mitigate noise pollution and to ensure year round functionality of the classroom.