River Community Centre
Project No. 6289
BE Collective provided structural and ESD services pro-bono for a unique sustainability project in the form of a Community Centre.
With a focus on Triple Bottom Line objectives (economic, social and environmental) BE Collective proposed the re-use of used car components in support of a ‘many hands’ construction methodology.
Car tyres were nominated as sacrificial concrete formwork about slender steel columns, to provide lateral stability and fire protection. These columns were nested within rammed-earth external and party walls facilitating both acoustic and thermal insulation.
Axles, drive shafts and shock absorbers that would normally be wasted would be repurposed as structural space-frame roof elements.
BE Collective chose a space-frame style roof for its inherent strength and to take advantage of the access to a ‘many hands’ volunteer labour force, facilitating rapid construction by a relatively unskilled workforce (more…)