Design concepts have been revealed for a Hassell-designed community building in Tanzania that would feature a structure 3D-printed from local earth.
The community centre is a component of a broader masterplan for Hope Village in Kibaha, Tanzania - a precinct that will include housing for 67 girls aged 3-18, spaces for childcare and skill development, and a 480-student school.
Clarke Hopkins Clarke is leading the village masterplan design in collaboration with Hassell, together with Australian charity One Heart Foundation.
Hassell is leading the design of the new community centre. Available to local residents, the centre will contain an open area for cultural and community activities, as well as a kitchen, a bakery and storage space. It will be a hub for shared meals, performances, gatherings and educational programs.
The design brief called for a large, uninterrupted area that could accommodate versatile functions; as a result, a central steel beam will support a roof frame that resembles a draped blanket. Comprising short pieces of timber, the roof will further be supported by cladding made of readily available corrugated metal sheet panels.
Sustainability is a key feature of the design. Walls will be 3D-printed from local earth, while sections of the roof structure will be crafted from locally sourced timber.
As both method and material, 3D-printed earth was selected for environmental benefits, which include being more energy efficient than sourcing off-site alternative materials. Rather than form a solid barrier, the walls will take shape as a series of interwoven layers, permitting ventilation and natural light to filter through.
Hassell's head of design and innovation Xavier De Kestelier emphasised that creating physical mock-ups for testing - carried out on full-scale prototypes at the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia (IAAC) campus in Barcelona, Spain - is a crucial part of the innovation process.
"We collaborated really early in the design process with IAAC. They are leading the research into 3D-printing with earth and were able to 3D-print a full-scale prototype at their fabrication lab in Barcelona so we could validate the technique of earth printing," De Kestelier said.
The project has involved and will continue to involve local people and expertise, from conception to completion.
Construction on the first phase of the masterplan is anticipated to commence in 2025.
