Flatpack

Funded by a US Naval grant I worked with Professors Robert Arens and Ed Saliklis on a ready-built emergency shelter. The assembled shelter is roughly 8′ squared and almost as tall. The base is made of two 8′ by 4′ panels that disassemble to form a container for shipping. The container ships to the site as a kit of part containing wall panels, cladding and roofing materials, and necessary hardware.

I consulted the team specifically by using parametric modeling to accentuate the hypar form while keeping the panels small enough to fit in the box. All structural pieces are injection molded recycled plastic made with kenaf reeds. We worked with the material manufacturer to engineer the specific material properties.