Disaster Relief Transitional Shelter
Masters Thesis: Design project 1
HOW CAN SCALABLE, RECONFIGURABLE TIMBER STRUCTURES BE UTILISED IN A CIRCULAR BUILDING ECONOMIC APPROACH TO ADDRESS THE CLIMATE CRISIS?
From the birth of this thesis, disaster relief was a key component. This project exhibits the circular economy timber structure in multiple disaster relief shelters. At its core, the transitional shelter is designed to be as simple as possible. The structural system is integrated using two 3.6m modules and can readily expand and contract when necessary. The shelters are designed with roof variations to create ambiguity and visual distinction within a shelter village. To cater to multiple climate zones, a variety of facade options were considered. These include but are not limited to: lightweight canvas tent, roll-on water activated concrete canvas, and natural vernacular bush materials. The idea is that these shelters can be stored and shipped out at a moments notice to the site of a disaster or refugee crisis and then be repurposed into an ongoing building recovery or transported to another disaster location. The construction of these transitional shelters is designed using timber components of standardised measurements.
Floor Plan arrangements
The floor plans of the transitional shelters are designed to have flexible application and serve many functions from a bunk room shelter that sleeps up to eight inhabitants, to a self contained family shelter that sleeps up to six inhabitants. In addition, the shelter interiors can also house amenities such as: bathrooms, shared kitchens, medical aid station, multi-purpose storage, and administrative office space. This spatial flexibility ensures the shelter can always adapt for every evolving functional need of disaster impacted communities.
Family Shelter
Bunkroom Shelter
Cladding Variability
Construction Assembly
Larger Shelter Design
Within the influx of disaster or refugee situations, there is always an increased demand for shelter accommodation, and often, emergency villages find themselves breaching housing capacity, requiring larger, more dense solutions. Inspired by Shigeru Ban’s emergency paper partitions, this larger shelter design addresses the need to accommodate people more densely while more individual shelters can be supplied and delivered. This design utilises eight 3.6m x 3.6m modules in an open-plan layout totalling 103 m2. The idea is that the grid format of the ceiling joist structure allows for the suspension of fabric partitions, creating a divided spatial layout. These partitions provide families and individuals seeking refuge essentials like bedding, shelter, and privacy. The partitions line the shelter’s perimeter, providing every inhabitant with a skylight and openable window for natural sunlight and fresh air. This simple, adaptable spatial solution ensures flexibility towards housing many people at once while preserving a sense of dignity and personal space.
Other Thesis Design Projects
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