Michael Jantzen’slatest creation is a multi-use building that explores and promotes theuse of existing agricultural building components in order to provide analternative, energy-efficient and sustainable way in which to enclosespace. Dubbed the Eco Shell Multi-Use Building System, the building isbased on the use of recycled steel and renewable energy.
Thestrong steel arches are simply bolted together to form vaulted sectionsthat can span up to 100 feet from leg to leg, and can be of nearly anylength. They are available in many different shapes, but the designerhas chosen to experiment with the simple arch, which is available inmany different widths. Once the thin steel arches are bolted together,they require no secondary support structure. This is because the thinsteel is preformed into deep corrugations that function as beams tosupport very heavy loads.
Sincethese arches do not require a secondary support structure, much lessmaterial is required to enclose any given space. As a result, much lessof the earth’s resources are consumed in order to construct a building.These structures can also be erected in a very short period of timewith unskilled labor and can easily be added on to, or subtracted from,if the functional needs of the building change.
TheEco Shell structure is made up of nine vaults, each of which isprogressively smaller than the next. This design allows for largeamounts of natural light to enter the interior space through shadedglass windows built into the ends of the vaults. These vaults can bemade of a double shell that can easily be insulated to any thickness bysimply blowing the insulation in between the two shells.
Rainwatergathering off of the structure is easy because of the deep corrugationsthat naturally collect the water and direct it to collection trays atthe base. Off-the-shelf flexible photovoltaic cells can be mounted tothe curved surface of the building, along with various kinds of solarwater and space heating systems. Different kinds of wind turbines canalso be mounted directly to and or around the structure for additionalpower generation. Some of the potential uses for the Eco-ShellMulti-Use Building System are visitor centers, office buildings,clinics, restaurants, retail facilities, wineries and even housing.
Thanks: [Michael Jantzen]