Zip-Shelter : community
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How did this design improve life?:
The Zip-Shelter, sub zero and above, is a rapidly deployable shelter for cold or hot climate
conditions, for use by refugees, migrants and for expeditions.
'The benefits of the lessons learned from major disasters are beginning to show. However, there
remains one particular sector in which too little progress has been made, and in which many
conservative and obsolecent attitudes survive, that is: emergency shelter and shelter after
disaster in a more general sense.'
United Nations High Commission for Refugees
Previous design proposals for rapid shelter have not been successful on a large scale for the
following reasons:
1. they are designed with a military mindset
2. they ignore the basic need for privacy
3. they can't be quickly configured for a cold or hot climate
4. they don't address storage of personal belongings
5. they are not designed for personalisation and expansion by the user
1. Instant shelter designs have not worked because designers
have taken a military camp approach, demanding uniformity and hierarchy and so inhibiting the
organic, social process.
Families and comunities are, even under the shock of disaster, self-organizing groups. They
need to be next to their damaged or destroyed home, when possible, to protect what is left and
to start sorting and rebuilding quickly.
2. In an extreme situation humans need to be with loved ones, not sharing their intimate space
with strangers. Communal meals and medical care are the exception.
3. Twenty-five percent of natural and man-made disasters happen under winter conditions. To
survive cold and sub-zero nights without good sleeping bags is not possible in tents. (China,
Iran, Italy, Afghanistan, the Balkans etc.). A container of Zip-Shelters can be configured for 'hot
or cold climate' deployment in one day.
4. Personal items which could be saved by survivors need to be securely stored and accessed
when needed.
5. The inhabitants can personalize and expand the shelter to their needs and location by adding
tarps and improvised extentions to cover an animal, a motorbike or an outside kitchen.
Water collection is built into the basic design.
ZIP-SHELTER
Tents are rapidly deployable 'mild climate' shelters; sea containers are slow shelters in terms of
deployment. The Zip-Shelter closes the need between these two products, being lightweight and
very compact in its disassembled form, easily transported by air, ground and on foot.
Excellent insulation properties of the wall material protect the inhabitants during sub-zero nights,
a function tents cannot offer.
A standard 20 foot sea container with a volumne of 33 cubic meters can hold 50 medium and 25
large collapsed Zip-Shelters, capable of supplying housing for approximately 450 people.
Upon arrival by plane, helicopter or truck, a pack of Zip-Shelters is transportable like a backpack
on foot where trucks can't pass due to missing roads or bridges. A stack of three Zip-Shelters
houses twenty people.
In the months after the loss / disaster, the material of our shelter
can be used to complete and improve the repaired or new permanent home as roofing, dividers
etc. Future Zip-Shelter generations with solar collectors can be used as such after the life of the
Zip-Shelter itself.
The Zip-Shelter, sub zero and above, is a rapidly deployable shelter for cold or hot climate
conditions, for use by refugees, migrants and for expeditions.
'The benefits of the lessons learned from major disasters are beginning to show. However, there
remains one particular sector in which too little progress has been made, and in which many
conservative and obsolecent attitudes survive, that is: emergency shelter and shelter after
disaster in a more general sense.'
United Nations High Commission for Refugees
Previous design proposals for rapid shelter have not been successful on a large scale for the
following reasons:
1. they are designed with a military mindset
2. they ignore the basic need for privacy
3. they can't be quickly configured for a cold or hot climate
4. they don't address storage of personal belongings
5. they are not designed for personalisation and expansion by the user
1. Instant shelter designs have not worked because designers
have taken a military camp approach, demanding uniformity and hierarchy and so inhibiting the
organic, social process.
Families and comunities are, even under the shock of disaster, self-organizing groups. They
need to be next to their damaged or destroyed home, when possible, to protect what is left and
to start sorting and rebuilding quickly.
2. In an extreme situation humans need to be with loved ones, not sharing their intimate space
with strangers. Communal meals and medical care are the exception.
3. Twenty-five percent of natural and man-made disasters happen under winter conditions. To
survive cold and sub-zero nights without good sleeping bags is not possible in tents. (China,
Iran, Italy, Afghanistan, the Balkans etc.). A container of Zip-Shelters can be configured for 'hot
or cold climate' deployment in one day.
4. Personal items which could be saved by survivors need to be securely stored and accessed
when needed.
5. The inhabitants can personalize and expand the shelter to their needs and location by adding
tarps and improvised extentions to cover an animal, a motorbike or an outside kitchen.
Water collection is built into the basic design.
ZIP-SHELTER
Tents are rapidly deployable 'mild climate' shelters; sea containers are slow shelters in terms of
deployment. The Zip-Shelter closes the need between these two products, being lightweight and
very compact in its disassembled form, easily transported by air, ground and on foot.
Excellent insulation properties of the wall material protect the inhabitants during sub-zero nights,
a function tents cannot offer.
A standard 20 foot sea container with a volumne of 33 cubic meters can hold 50 medium and 25
large collapsed Zip-Shelters, capable of supplying housing for approximately 450 people.
Upon arrival by plane, helicopter or truck, a pack of Zip-Shelters is transportable like a backpack
on foot where trucks can't pass due to missing roads or bridges. A stack of three Zip-Shelters
houses twenty people.
In the months after the loss / disaster, the material of our shelter
can be used to complete and improve the repaired or new permanent home as roofing, dividers
etc. Future Zip-Shelter generations with solar collectors can be used as such after the life of the
Zip-Shelter itself.
Name of Designer(s):
Sigmar Willnauer, Maik Hanel, Clare Johnson, Sebastian Lex, Ingo Sigler
Sigmar Willnauer, Maik Hanel, Clare Johnson, Sebastian Lex, Ingo Sigler
Designers professional status:
Professional
Professional
Status of realization:
Not realized
Not realized
Kind of design:
Tangible
Tangible
Year of production, realization or publishing:
2004
2004
Designed in country:
Germany
Germany
Used on continents:
Entire World
Entire World
Short description of design:
Zip-Shelter
Fullfills the basic need for privacy
Adapts rapidly to very cold and hot climates
Secures personal belongings
Can be customized and adapted by the user
Is a non-military, non-hierarchical design
Can be transported on foot
Can be recycled into new or rebuilt dwellings later on
Zip-Shelter
Fullfills the basic need for privacy
Adapts rapidly to very cold and hot climates
Secures personal belongings
Can be customized and adapted by the user
Is a non-military, non-hierarchical design
Can be transported on foot
Can be recycled into new or rebuilt dwellings later on
Functionallity and use of design:
Zips together easily by non experts
Sleeps 2 to 10 people
Sub-Zero version maintains bodyheat through high
performance light panel walls and floor
Hot-Climate version offers circulation-cooling
Stores the users' belongings in attic-like roof
Public-private patio to communicate, watch, greet
Surfaces for messages and drawings
Zips together easily by non experts
Sleeps 2 to 10 people
Sub-Zero version maintains bodyheat through high
performance light panel walls and floor
Hot-Climate version offers circulation-cooling
Stores the users' belongings in attic-like roof
Public-private patio to communicate, watch, greet
Surfaces for messages and drawings
Drawbacks of life improvement:
Not fully resolved so far:
Prototyping will bring changes to some details.
Winds of 50 km/h and above require rope and additional anchors to secure the shelter to the
ground.
Laminated, bio-polymer composite sheets are already used in car interiors, but we have not yet
located the appropriate supplier for our requirements.
We do not know yet what the manufacturing price of the product will be.
Not fully resolved so far:
Prototyping will bring changes to some details.
Winds of 50 km/h and above require rope and additional anchors to secure the shelter to the
ground.
Laminated, bio-polymer composite sheets are already used in car interiors, but we have not yet
located the appropriate supplier for our requirements.
We do not know yet what the manufacturing price of the product will be.
Research and need:
'In terms of design of refugee settlements, virtually all current solutions are based on a military
type layout, that puts expediency and perceived efficiency before sensitivity to the inhabitants ...
living patterns. This type of organisation can in fact hinder the recovery process of the people.'
Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator
'When a disaster occurs , the immediate preoccupation of the population is to save life and
property. Suitable shelter can play a mayor role in preventing further distress, illness and death.'
Robert Kronenburg in 'Houses in Motion - Shelter after Disaster'
Research:
Staying in and studying makeshift shelters in snow fields (Volcano Rinjani, 4100 m, Indonesia,
Mauna Loa, Hawaii) and in hot climates (Vietnam, Brazil)
Studying the self-organizing behavior of refugees, migrants and porters at these sites
Studying the basic functions and processes of sleep, rest, meals, fire, storage and clothing
We have developed entrepreneurial design solutions and gathered experience in global mobility
and the economy of transport of lightweight, collapsible structures.
We have implemented products made of flat semi-rigid materials for a decade and are certain of
the high feasibility of this design.
Manufacturing Methods:
Laser or water jet cutting; ultrasonic welding; industrial sewing (walls)
Vacuum forming (floor)
Materials - 2005 Prototypes:
Two outer skins of waterproof, nonwoven fiber board, with 3 mm foam inner insulation,
bendable like a thin aluminum sheet, used as in inner door covers of cars
Sub Zero Zip-Shelter: 'thermo-rest' technology for door and window
Hot Climate Zip-Shelter: front- and back wall as grids (with privacy shield)
Materials - Projected:
Laminated, three layer, bio-polymer composite sheets (coconut fiber or similar) for walls and
storage-roof / attic; waterproof yet breathable; solar roof optional
Literature:
Department of Humanitarian Affairs: Floods. Dr. J. Miller, United Nations, New York 1997
Ephemeral / Portable Architecture. Architectural Design, London 1998
Houses in Motion. Robert Kronenburg, Academy Editions, London 1995
Shelter after Disaster. Oxford Politechnic Press, Oxford, 1978
Winter Accomodation for Refugees in Ex-Yugoslavia. Workshop on Improved Shelter Response
and Environment. Swiss Disaster Relief Unit, UNHCR, Geneva 1993
The Earth Shook, The Sky Burned. W. Bronson, Chronicle Books, San Francisco 1986
Der mittlere Transport-Hubschrauber. Soldat und Technik, 42/5 2004
Mutant Materials in Contemporary Design. P. Antonelli, The Museum of Modern Art, NY 1995
Handbuch Material Technologie. Nicola Stattmann, Rat fuer Formgebung, Ludwigsburg 2000
and others
www: www.isover.de www.materialconnexion.com
www.dfg.de www.unhcr.org
'In terms of design of refugee settlements, virtually all current solutions are based on a military
type layout, that puts expediency and perceived efficiency before sensitivity to the inhabitants ...
living patterns. This type of organisation can in fact hinder the recovery process of the people.'
Office of the United Nations Disaster Relief Coordinator
'When a disaster occurs , the immediate preoccupation of the population is to save life and
property. Suitable shelter can play a mayor role in preventing further distress, illness and death.'
Robert Kronenburg in 'Houses in Motion - Shelter after Disaster'
Research:
Staying in and studying makeshift shelters in snow fields (Volcano Rinjani, 4100 m, Indonesia,
Mauna Loa, Hawaii) and in hot climates (Vietnam, Brazil)
Studying the self-organizing behavior of refugees, migrants and porters at these sites
Studying the basic functions and processes of sleep, rest, meals, fire, storage and clothing
We have developed entrepreneurial design solutions and gathered experience in global mobility
and the economy of transport of lightweight, collapsible structures.
We have implemented products made of flat semi-rigid materials for a decade and are certain of
the high feasibility of this design.
Manufacturing Methods:
Laser or water jet cutting; ultrasonic welding; industrial sewing (walls)
Vacuum forming (floor)
Materials - 2005 Prototypes:
Two outer skins of waterproof, nonwoven fiber board, with 3 mm foam inner insulation,
bendable like a thin aluminum sheet, used as in inner door covers of cars
Sub Zero Zip-Shelter: 'thermo-rest' technology for door and window
Hot Climate Zip-Shelter: front- and back wall as grids (with privacy shield)
Materials - Projected:
Laminated, three layer, bio-polymer composite sheets (coconut fiber or similar) for walls and
storage-roof / attic; waterproof yet breathable; solar roof optional
Literature:
Department of Humanitarian Affairs: Floods. Dr. J. Miller, United Nations, New York 1997
Ephemeral / Portable Architecture. Architectural Design, London 1998
Houses in Motion. Robert Kronenburg, Academy Editions, London 1995
Shelter after Disaster. Oxford Politechnic Press, Oxford, 1978
Winter Accomodation for Refugees in Ex-Yugoslavia. Workshop on Improved Shelter Response
and Environment. Swiss Disaster Relief Unit, UNHCR, Geneva 1993
The Earth Shook, The Sky Burned. W. Bronson, Chronicle Books, San Francisco 1986
Der mittlere Transport-Hubschrauber. Soldat und Technik, 42/5 2004
Mutant Materials in Contemporary Design. P. Antonelli, The Museum of Modern Art, NY 1995
Handbuch Material Technologie. Nicola Stattmann, Rat fuer Formgebung, Ludwigsburg 2000
and others
www: www.isover.de www.materialconnexion.com
www.dfg.de www.unhcr.org
