KAY E SANTE NAN AYITI - Housing and Health in Haiti

Add To Collection

KAY E SANTE NAN AYITI - Housing and Health in Haiti

Firm

Type

Residential › Private House Multi Unit Housing

SIZE

5000 sqft - 10,000 sqft

The Haiti Health House is conceived as a demonstration and celebration of the simple engineering and construction techniques required to provide fresh-air circulation and structural stability to the community of Haitians living with HIV and AIDS. The stable and sheltering environment of the Health House will act as a unique and inspired refuge from the harsh social and economic environment currently enveloping Haiti. Its massive stability, openness to light and air, and dynamic architectural language mark a new beginning for the inhabitants of this house and village. The Haiti Health Houses will be built along an internal street that will provide the villagers with an internal community of neighbors. It is hoped that as the Health House Village grows, the boundaries between houses will become indistinguishable and the village will become a demonstration of the power of community to overcome difficult obstacles through mutual understanding, compassion, and cooperation. Fresh air circulation, achieved through variable barometric pressurization and heat convection will ensure fresh air circulation throughout the night and day with little or no mechanical assistance. The arrangement of walls and roofs will funnel fresh air through the living spaces drawing cooler, cleaner air from the surrounding gardens inward and upward to the higher clerestory vents of the higher roofs. This continual and rapid exchange of air will aid in resisting the spread of air-born contagions.
Confined Masonry(CM) construction will allow local builders to achieve earthquake and hurricane resistant structures with familiar construction techniques and available materials. In CM construction, typical masonry construction is enhanced with the use of reinforced cast-in-place concrete posts and beams and diagonal bracing. Decorative finishes can visually articulate these new construction techniques and celebrate the life and safety of the health house through bold colors and vibrant forms that are part of the culture of Haiti. Lateral bracing is a primary consideration when designing structures to resist lateral forces generated by earthquakes and hurricanes. Horizontal and vertical planes must work together to ensure that lateral and gravity loads are safely distributed to the earth. Furthermore, it is possible to articulate the diagonal bracing as a new visual language of construction that celebrates these newer, safer construction techniques.

Product Spec Sheet

Were your products used?

Join as a manufacturer to add your products.

Collaborating Firms

Was your firm involved? Add it now.

Team

Kevin Baxter

Architect

Were you involved? Add yourself.

Keep Exploring Architizer by Creating a Free Account or Logging in.

KAY E SANTE NAN AYITI - Housing and Health in Haiti

KAY E SANTE NAN AYITI - Housing and Health in Haiti

Product Spec Sheet

Collaborating Firms

Team