Open Architecture Network

PROJECT DESCRIPTION:
Our design explores the idea of ‘capacity building’ to accommodate two main objectives: (1) to facilitate computer-related training and knowledge accumulation for the youth of Mukuru Kwa Njenga and help them to connect with global information flows, and (2) to use the construction activity as an opportunity for skill development and subsequent social and economic growth for those involved in its production.

The design moves from the hypothesis that the integration of technological development and broad socio-economic growth can be facilitated by ‘open’ (or ‘incremental’) industrial design strategies rather than always planning for self-contained interventions. What is proposed, in other words, is a design and technological framework that is both flexible and adaptable, and can therefore be used to expand the options available within the project, thus helping it perform as a training ground.

As such, while providing a ‘centre for learning’, the project also looks at the prospect of ‘learning through the (building) process’. Using building projects as training opportunities without losing productivity, however, means that the technologies employed must have latitude for errors and non-optimal application - i.e., they must be inherently ‘robust’ as opposed to precise and therefore more ‘sensitive’. For example, the radio station will be built with panels that only use elementary materials and tools required to make such a system. Since these panels are projected as the way in for unskilled labour to acquire the particular building knowledge, errors will have to be expected. Therefore, the final walls will be given a vigorous finish by applying graffiti and other such art whose effects are to be strengthened by the irregularities of the construction process (incidentally, the underside of the roof will also be given similar treatment through the intervention of local artists). The other walls will have following characteristics respectively: (1) the child care compound is to have a rough-swan board finish transferred by the nature of formwork, (2) commercial spaces will use leaf fossils as stencils to create textured surfaces, and (3) articulated formwork will create ornamentation and reliefs in the surfaces of library walls. Such a scalable capacity in a building system can provide an organic knowledge-building platform for the labour involved in its production. The staging of the construction will follow the process of labour up-skilling.

To satisfy the ‘robust technology’ criteria, the design avoids the use of scarce, expensive and overly labour-intensive materials processes, thus making the components and subsystems cost-effective compared to other systems available in the market. By implementing a mix of labour-intensive and capital-intensive processes for building production, less skilled labour is expected to be used through limited training and modular breakdown of activities. Clarity of design and the performance of technological systems do not depend on excessive craftsmanship. Easy-to-erect connection techniques and modular design for easy handling are considered as the preferable engineering options. When joining sub-systems together, strategies are in place to prevent the failure of one module or element of a system from triggering a chain of failures.

The ability to provide good environmental performance is also considered a key objective in the design by implementing technical options such as rainwater collection and re-use, smaller thermal masses for energy efficiency, roof as a horizontal boundary to protect interior from direct sun light, de-centralized storage areas that act as additional thermal barriers, and the selection of a façade panel system with high thermal properties. The attention to programmatic concerns such as optimum internet connectivity, clear supervision of computer kiosks, adequate areas for socialization, and incorporation of ‘multi-use’ spaces, etc. are also treated as paramount when resolving the design.