Component reuse for disaster sheltering: From deployable scissor structures to kit-of-parts structures

Abstract

In the aftermath of disasters, many people's homes have been damaged or destroyed and others have been displaced. It is in such tragic moments that humanitarian organizations have an important task by providing shelter assistance for the affected population. Besides the family shelters that are provided for temporary housing, collective service tents are also necessary for field hospital, community centre, food,.... Although the current family shelters are adequate enough for the emergency use, there is a demand for better collective service tents because (i) the current tents are structurally complex which slows the building process, (ii) the current tents are not adaptable, (iii) after the initial emergency phase, these tents are not reused. The aim of this paper is to investigate a better alternative for collective service tents by using deployable constructions for the first emergency phase after a disaster, and by designing the component as such that they can be reused for a kit-of-part structure for the second phase of the disaster, i.e. the transitional phase. A first preliminary study is presented in this paper where the structural feasibility of the concept is tested. A barrel vault structure of 6m span and a height of 3m composed of scissor elements is modelled in a finite element program. The structure is then designed to fulfil the boundary conditions for the emergency phase. The components of the barrel vault structure are then used to introduce the idea behind the use of some static kit-of-parts structures for the transitional phase. The results are very promising. Together with experts from the field, we are very optimistic about the use of deployable shelters for humanitarian relief in order to propose a construction which can be used for the emergency and transitional phase of disaster relief. © 2014 WIT Press.