In developing countries where resources are limited, the task of providing shelter for poverty stricken communities that are already in dire need of basic amenities can be a daunting one. This paper proposes a solution to this housing issue in the form of a modular home construction kit. These kits will provide such communities with a tool for sustainably constructing their own dwellings using local manpower combined with the natural resources available on site. The technique is based on the rammed earth principle in which the raw material for the construction process is primarily the natural soil present at the targeted location. This result in considerable savings in terms of sourcing and transporting costs of building materials typically used in traditional constructions methods. In addition, heavy or powered equipment is not needed for this construction technique making it a viable option for places where an electrical power supply or fuel source is not available.The project is part of a service-learning program, recently introduced at the University of Colorado at Colorado Springs to afford students an opportunity to work on a multidisciplinary team while using their engineering knowledge to provide solutions to real world problems. The student team working on the project has been involved in developing all the necessary procedures for assessment of the location’s soil type as well as the design and sourcing of the kit components. They will also be required to develop the necessary instructional and training material to allow for assembly of the kit components and the implementation of the technique to produce a finished structure (excluding the roof).
Robustness and efficiency of geometric programs: The Predicate Construction Kit (PCK)
