The Centre of Alternative Construction
The starting point of my research is the distribution and consumption of freshwater available for human consumption . I identify the four types of environmental footprints: carbon, fossil energy, land and water. The water footprint of construction materials let me to the study of the carbon footprint embodied due to the journey and the production. This becomes an important part supporting one of the principles of the project, increasing the use of local materials, recycling, and reusing in order to reduce the overall consumption of CO2.
Based on The Economic Action Plan of the Welsh Government, the proposal will provide new opportunities to young people to train on designing without waste. The ethos of the project is based on thinking in “systems”, using renewable energies and resources, while eliminating waste because the waste of one process is the opportunity for another one. Considering elements in relation to their environmental and social context.
The proposal will take placed in Rhayader, Mid Wales, complementing the existing Centre of Alternative Technology (CAT), in North Wales, and associated and supported by the construction industry across Wales and collaborating with the different Wales Universities and Centres of Vocational Education and Training, as well as acting as a hub for the small town. The centre will be inclusive (mixture in the brief), it will encourage people from inside and outside of the community also bringing people from the industry and intersect all of them with the community, creating public spaces, improving it.
The Hub aims to act as a demonstration centre, being inspirational for the community and the industry, reusing (existing building, tires..), reducing (CO2, energy…), recycling (Ground Granulated Blast Furnace Slag (GGBS), substituting part of Portland cement…), and recovering (an empty space, creating a linking with the high street).
The centre will intersect the community, teaching, research and texting, lead by collaboration and progress.
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Contact
Email: arranzc@cardiff.ac.uk