Tenth International Conference on The Constructed Environment

Abstract

This research will result in the design of a home that is hyper-efficient and energy self-sufficient and that is able to cope with future severe weather events while also providing basic services needed for families during post-disaster recovery. We refer to this research as Advanced Modular Housing Design (AMHD). The AMHD research addresses the design of housing that can be rapidly built in factories, that can cope with future major events, and that can become a major community asset. The natural disasters that we will consider in guiding the identification of technologies required for the AMHD include hurricane force winds, flooding, and storm surges. The attributes required for AMHD post-disaster housing include high structural strength, high levels of energy efficiency, energy self-sufficiency, and deconstructability. The study considers novel, high strength materials that are compatible with and enhance rapid modular housing manufacturing. It envisions housing that has built-in renewable energy systems and energy and storage to enhance post-disaster living conditions. This research addresses the enormous challenge of greatly improving community resilience and rapidly rebuilding communities that have been badly damaged and perhaps even destroyed by major storms. In summary, we propose a way addressing the problem of how to rapidly provide large quantities of post-disaster housing is advanced technologies and process improvements that support the design and manufacturing of resilient, sustainable, and affordable post disaster housing to not just save the community, but save the earth.