1. ArchDaily
  2. Disaster Relief Architecture

Disaster Relief Architecture: The Latest Architecture and News

Subscriber Access

Inexpensive, Easy-to-Build Gridshell Pavilion Uses Air-Filled Cushions for Construction

SheltAir, a pavilion developed and designed by Gregory Quinn as part of his doctoral thesis at the Berlin University of the Arts is, as its name suggests, a shelter constructed with the help of air: a meticulously devised system comprising an elastic gridshell and pneumatic falsework in the form of air-filled cushions.

Inexpensive, Easy-to-Build Gridshell Pavilion Uses Air-Filled Cushions for Construction - Image 1 of 4Inexpensive, Easy-to-Build Gridshell Pavilion Uses Air-Filled Cushions for Construction - Image 2 of 4Inexpensive, Easy-to-Build Gridshell Pavilion Uses Air-Filled Cushions for Construction - Image 3 of 4Inexpensive, Easy-to-Build Gridshell Pavilion Uses Air-Filled Cushions for Construction - Image 4 of 4Inexpensive, Easy-to-Build Gridshell Pavilion Uses Air-Filled Cushions for Construction - More Images+ 39

This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks

This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks - Featured Image
Construction of house made of recycled plastic bricks.. Image Courtesy of Conceptos Plásticos

Ten years ago when Colombian Fernando Llanos tried to build his own house in Cundinamarca, he realized that moving the materials from Bogota was going to be very difficult. After mulling it over, he decided to build his house out of plastic, and after a series of trials and errors, he ended up meeting architect Óscar Méndez, who developed his thesis on the same subject, and together they founded the company Conceptos Plásticos (Plastic Concepts) in 2011. 

The innovative local company managed to patent its system of bricks and pillars made of recycled plastic, which is then put together like Lego pieces in a construction system that lets you build houses up to two stories high in five days.

This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks - Image 1 of 4This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks - Image 2 of 4This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks - Image 3 of 4This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks - Image 7 of 4This House was Built in 5 Days Using Recycled Plastic Bricks - More Images+ 11