During my 2nd year of Architecture at Nottingham Uni, a group of around 50 students designed nurseries for the rural village of Calais in the Limpopo region of South Africa. A winning project was chosen by tutors during the beginning of the new year and developed by six 5th year students. During Easter 2011, we all went out as two different phases to build the final design ourselves.
This project was done through the charity 'Education Africa', and each student needed to raise £2,000 each for materials and construction.
Here I have documented the whole process from our individual designs up until when we left Calais Village, Limpopo, South Africa.
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THE INDIVIDUAL DESIGNS
The first few weeks were spent each designing our own nursery. These weren't brought to a very developed stage, but more to get a feel of our proposals.
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THE GROUP DESIGNS
In a team of 4, we chose the successful aspects of our designs, that would work together, to create a new team proposal. Working together proved enjoyable and far quicker. Coordination was an important aspect to be concentrated on.
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| Concepts |
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| Plan |
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| Roof Plan |
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| Section |
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| Elevation |
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| Environmental Plan |
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| Construction Plan |
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| Models |
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Sketchup Design
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THE FINAL PROPOSAL
Unfortunately our design was not chosen. However, the tutors decided to combine two of the other designs, which was then developed by the 5th years during the second semester.
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OUT IN SOUTH AFRICA, EASTER 2011
I was in phase 2, so out in Limpopo for weeks 3 to 6. Upon arrival we found some aspects of the project hadn't quite gone to plan and phase 1 had had many setbacks.
- timbre had not been delivered
- concrete had not been delivered
- problems with the company coordination
- communication difficulties with suppliers
- budget issues
Raising the trusses for the classroom was a full team task. Everyone helped in lifting, moving, pulling, placing and securing each in turn. This method was slow to begin with but as we got used to it and certain tricks were learnt, we were able to erect four trusses in a day, rather than one.
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| Erecting the Classroom Trusses |
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| On Site |
Perlins were attached to the trusses to create the superstructure of the roof. Firstly, 6m timber was laid at staggered intervals and the 3.6m timber inserted to infill and strengthen the structure.
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| Ground Composition |
With members of the team mainly working on different aspects of the project, times came when certain groups would have to wait around and their work would slow down. This would be due to materials not having been delivered or the fact that there were limited amounts of tools on site and power usage (we had a generator) that one group would have to wait for another to finish. The upside of this is that we had a chance to help other people and observe all the tasks on site, enabling us to get a full understanding of the build. This was particularly true for the assembly of the toilet block trusses. A task that should not have taken so long seemed to drag out, especially as we were short of time and it was not seen as as much of a priority as the classrooms.
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| Smoothing the Concrete |
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| Splitting the Concrete |
The last of the concrete was delivered on Day 9. We also got to see how the concrete slabs were spilt to allow for expansion especially in the hot weather climate of South Africa.
Whilst out in Limpopo, many decisions had to be made regarding design changes, to account for the reduced budget, lack of time, material availability and many other limiting aspects we came across. One major design change was for the heavyweight walls. Gabian walls were going to be used, but due to money and how they are ideal homes for snakes, the northern facade construction became breeze block, using the bricks left on site that Sophie the headmistress had been given.
Framing for the lightweight walls was installed up to 2.4m on the other facades. At the end of the day it was decided that this structural composition was not internally beautiful and so was removed with a new approach in mind. Even though we were behind schedule, it would not be productive to rush the construction and cut corners. The nursery must work in all aspects to be successful.
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| On Site Front Elevation Ideas |
More specific work now needed to be carried out. Painting was a big job, ensuring that primers were applied where necessary and it was kept neat. It was decided that only window boxes and the main columns, would have colour applied to them. The lintel splash course was installed to control the drainage and protect the timber.
The new stud work for the lightweight walls was installed using a series of horizontal beams spaced at 550mm and off set vertical timber. These were then filled with insulation, a dpm and mosquito netting where necessary. Another on site decision was made for the external facade material. A sheet of corrugated metal was used as it was easy to install and thin so does not get hot. The aesthetics of this choice was questioned by many at first but did soon grow on most people. The only issue would be the glare it may produce being such a highly reflective material.
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| Composition of a Lightweight Wall |
The tall, large window boxes were secured on the front facade at the same angle (15*) as the high windows on this same elevation. Mosquito netting was attached to the high windows and beading of all window boxes nailed in.
The cladding of the front elevation, lightweight walls differed to that of the sides. A number of small timber batons were accurately nailed into place giving an aesthetically pleasing and successfully contrasting appearance. An efficient production line of measuring, cutting, drilling, varnishing and nailing was set up for this, so that it ran smoothly and quickly.
Interior Cladding of the lightweight walls consisted of large sheets of plywood. These were carefully cut to size and nailed in, ensuring that the grain ran in the correct direction and the correct side of the sheet was on show.
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| The (half) Finished Classrooms |
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| Sub Team T.I.A |
Rest and Relaxation
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| On Safari |
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| On Safari |
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| On Safari |
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| The Gorge |
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| The Gorge |
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| The Gorge |
I learnt a lot from this project and particularly appreciated the practical aspect of it and the cultural insight. It has been a great chance to work as a team, getting to know everyone and learning from each other.
We started our phase of the project with setbacks, but with determination, managed to meet many goals, even if we could not finish it completely. I learnt new practical skills and realised that tasks usually take far longer than you would expect. As we were pushed for time is was important to find a suitable balance between working speed and remaining neat and accurate. The use of jigs proved to be very valuable, aiding with consistency and speed. I learnt to read technical drawings with greater ease and noticed aspects of the build that i previously would not have considered. During the three weeks that we were there, it was interesting how much of the design was amended on site. This allowed more flexibility, which was especially useful due to our budget and time constraints.
I also learnt a lot about South African life. Their weather was a large drive for the design of the building and was why Eco factors were highly important. These included, heavyweight walls, insulation, roof overhangs, cladding choices, ventilation, bio toilets and cement mixture ratios. Their speed of life was also had an affect on the project. South Africans take their time, this affected deliveries and our transport to site. This slowed down production which was hard when we were short of time.
I really enjoyed the experience. Even though intense at times is was extremely rewarding.
Framing for the lightweight walls was installed up to 2.4m on the other facades. At the end of the day it was decided that this structural composition was not internally beautiful and so was removed with a new approach in mind. Even though we were behind schedule, it would not be productive to rush the construction and cut corners. The nursery must work in all aspects to be successful.
The cladding of the front elevation, lightweight walls differed to that of the sides. A number of small timber batons were accurately nailed into place giving an aesthetically pleasing and successfully contrasting appearance. An efficient production line of measuring, cutting, drilling, varnishing and nailing was set up for this, so that it ran smoothly and quickly.
