Three Polish designers have come up with a mobile skyscraper the 'Sky Shelter' that is easy to transport, takes up little space and is sustainable. With this they won the annual design competition of the magazine eVolo earlier this year. eVolo is an architectural and design magazine that awards a prize every year for a new idea that has to do with vertical architecture.
Skyshelter.zip. Mobile skyscraper as a sustainable solution
Skyshelter.zip The mobile skyscraper - is a multifunctional shelter that provides food, energy and water in, for example, disaster areas. The Skyshelter.zip is very easy to move with helicopters because of the foldable structure and the minimum weight. Because no more trucks are needed for this, it is simpler, faster and better for the environment.
The system works as follows: the base supports are anchored in the ground and then the skyscraper unfolds thanks to the large helium balloon that is placed in the package. The helium balloon can pull up the entire structure and hold it standing. Furthermore, structural steel wires are behind the canvas of the skyscraper, which makes it resistant to gusts of wind.
For the Skyshelter.zip, Nano material is used on the basis of durable ETFE film. In this material, the designers want to create a network of small separate solar cells. These are then not fixed on a large plate so that the fabric remains flexible. With the solar cells, the building is able to produce clean energy when needed in case of emergency.
In addition, the top of the balloon is shaped so that rainwater can flow through the hollow center of the skyscraper. Here the water is cleaned with special filters and then collected for further use.
By: Britt van den Elshout
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