Why we must eliminate shacks and low building standards

HEINRICH SCHROEDER OF KAVANGO BLOCK BRICK WRITES:

Too many times we forget that we are humans dealing with human beings, and not computers designed to deal with computers.

Human Health and Safety factors which need to be considered when designing a structure for human occupation:

Building provides environments in which people can feel comfortable and safe. To understand the ways building systems are designed to meet these needs, we must first look at how the human body perceives and reacts to interior environments.

The human skin surface provides a layer of insulation between the body’s interior and the environment. In order to maintain thermal equilibrium the human body needs to maintain a balance between the exterior environment and the interior of the human body. Similar to the design of a human body, factors need to be carefully considered when designing a structure which will be used for human occupation. The average sized person has a body temperature of approximately 37 degrees Celsius. Pregnant women is approximately 10 degrees higher.

The Human body generates heat which is measured in Watts. The heat generated by the human body can be compared to that of the internal combustion engine.

Typical activity and body heat generation:

ActivityWatts

Sleep 70

Sitting at a desk100

Walking200

Exercising300-850

The Reality (Namibian Scenario):

There is enough land in Namibia. The issue is the provision of serviced land.

Namibia is the most expensive country in the world when it comes to making serviced land available. We need to examine alternative and economical ways to service available land for development.

Consultant fees are way too high when it comes to the servicing of land. More often than not, serviced land becomes littered with corrugated iron shacks.

An iron shack measuring 12 square meters with 12 to 14 people inside generating body heat and with little or no cross ventilation cannot be deemed safe for human occupation.

If all forms of dwellings for human occupation were built on standard, we would find the occupancy rate of state hospitals reduced by up to 50%. Overcrowded shacks and dwellings with high moisture content are key contributing factors towards the spread of air borne diseases such as TB. Children growing up in shacks are unable to concentrate on home work during the day due to soaring temperatures inside the corrugated iron structure.

When designing a structure heat generated by people must to be considered. It is for this reason that minimum basic requirements for human health and safety are enforced by law.

Standards are not limited to homes. Some malls selling perishable food including restaurants do not have adequate ceiling heights for the cross ventilation of fresh air.

Who is responsible for these often low standards: municipalities or architects?

Switching off air-conditioning to save money further aggravates the situation.

Many bathrooms in complexes and public areas do not have access to natural fresh air cross ventilation. Instead they are fitted with extractor fans.

The challenge we face is that most architects don’t have the time to study new building technologies and conditions facing families occupying buildings. Construction firms also need to update themselves on current information about new building materials and building trends in order to move forward, hence there is a big gap in the building industry which needs to be filled. New, proven technologies need to be embraced and communicated to architects and engineers.