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Session No. # 2506

“THE NATURAL HOUSE” – CONCEPT, DESIGN & CONSTRUCTION

Ali Uddin Ansari, Ishrat Meera Mirzana

Dept. of Mechanical Engineering, Muffakham Jah College of Engineering & Technology (MJCET), Hyderabad, India

Abstract

The city of Hyderabad, an explosively growing metropolis located in the south central region of India, experiences hot and dry summers and generally warm day temperatures most of the year. The building construction approaches and techniques currently in use involve excessive use of cement, brick and reinforced concrete with no insulation, resulting in considerable thermal discomfort to occupants several months in a year. To meet the objectives of “climate responsive building design & construction”, an initiative at Muffakham Jah College of Engineering & Technology (MJCET), entitled Centre for Environment Studies & Socioresponsive Engineering, has conceived and developed the design of “The Natural House”. This has been set up as an undergraduate R&D project, supervised by two faculty members (the two authors of this paper). It is expected that following the R&D phase the students – a group of twenty-three mechanical engineering juniors, including eight female students, will construct a small “Natural House”.

The House is being designed for maximum compatibility with the natural surroundings and uses a wide spectrum of principles modeled on the homeostatic and self-regulating behavior of biological and ecological systems. The overall design objective is to ensure maximum energy efficiency, low construction and maintenance cost, thermal comfort without air-conditioning, high aesthetic quality and intimate contact with the natural elements.

The paper describes the architectural and engineering principles used and our attempt to provide an inspired student group an opportunity to fully exercise their creative imagination and “learn by doing”.

“Proceedings of the 2003 American Society for Engineering Education Annual Conference & Exposition Copyright © 2003, American Society for Engineering Education”

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Ansari, A. (2003, June), "The Natural House" Concept, Design & Construction Paper presented at 2003 Annual Conference, Nashville, Tennessee. 10.18260/1-2--12630