In the Dominican Republic, an average of 75,000 people are forced to leave their homes every year during hurricane season due to the flooding of the rivers. Unfortunately, there are not enough official shelters to accommodate all affected people. We have designed NIDO to provide safe shelters that can be installed in any open space.
Collaborative Design:
Cynthia Ventura, Tulio Feliz, Amanda Cuello.
Cynthia Ventura, Tulio Feliz, Amanda Cuello.
Graduation Project, Industrial Design at INTEC (Instituto Tecnológico de Santo Domingo)
Year: 2010
Year: 2010
PROBLEM:
The project was defined as a portable space equipped to allow people that has been removed from their homes meet their basic needs and preserve their privacy while taking advantage of available space. The main focus was towards disaster relief initiatives in large communities.
SOLUTION:
The product consists of two main modules: One individual module for sleeping and storing a certain amount of belongings, and another one for hygiene and physiological needs. This basic unit can be extended by adding more dormitory modules. The purpose is to organize people by family units.
The structure is collapsible, so it can be used continuously. Furthermore, it is lightweight and small in size when in disarmed mode for easy transport, allowing for it to be carried even to remote locations.
Approximate dimensions for one packed module: 1mx80cmx30cm.
SOLUTION:
The product consists of two main modules: One individual module for sleeping and storing a certain amount of belongings, and another one for hygiene and physiological needs. This basic unit can be extended by adding more dormitory modules. The purpose is to organize people by family units.
The structure is collapsible, so it can be used continuously. Furthermore, it is lightweight and small in size when in disarmed mode for easy transport, allowing for it to be carried even to remote locations.
Approximate dimensions for one packed module: 1mx80cmx30cm.
Solution
Dormitory module
Bathroom module
Installed shelter
Packaging
The size of the packaged module was very important because the communities that need assistance are often isolated and it should be possible to take the shelter to a location near them. The approximate dimensions for one packed module are 1mx80cmx30cm.
Exploration.
After a lenghty analysis process in which we talked to authorities, emergency officers and people affected by the floods, we extracted a group of important requirements to lead us through the exploration phase. A great number of posibilities were explored at this point using several media, for instance sketching, modeling and role playing.
