Sustainable (Green) Hotels
The Greenest Resorts - Built from Prefabricated, Modular Bamboo Panels
By Sam Small, Vice President - Developing Markets, Bamboo Technologies
Sam Small
Changing outdated notions regarding construction is like pouring
refrigerated maple syrup – slow, but worth it. Unfortunately, time is
tight for adopting environmentally sensitive practices; we need to do
it now. Utilizing prefabrication and modular building techniques and
choosing innovative and sustainable building materials like Structural
Bamboo can play an important role in establishing a conservative and
sustainable eco-footprint and identity for a hotel or resort
development.
How to Build?
Construction utilizing prefabricated elements has been around for
centuries in various designs for bridges and buildings throughout
Europe, and, it can be argued, goes back to the pyramids of Egypt. The
basic process was to produce some, if not all, building elements
off-site in a controlled area to eliminate waste, time, theft and
errors. Once completed, the prefabricated elements were delivered and
efficiently installed, further saving time at the job
site.
A hundred years ago the Sears catalog launched the Modern Homes
program. These prefabricated kits were well respected and over 70,000
sold as an affordable choice over custom built homes. In London, many
of the homes and buildings destroyed during World War II were replaced
with prefabricated construction.
Common perceptions towards prefabrication suffered when London
occupants remained even after the use of inferior materials shortened
the prefab’s serviceable life and in the US the post-war boom afforded
the public the luxury of a custom-built home rather than “just a
catalog house”. Add to this the general confusion of housing
terminology; “Prefab” and “Modular” are in fact quite different from
“Manufactured” and “Mobile”. A Prefab or Modular Home is
assembled on a stable foundation just like a common “Stick” or “Site
Built” construction, a “double-wide tornado magnet” is a Manufactured
Home and a Mobile Home is a recreational vehicle. As well,
Prefabricated and Modular refer to different things too: Anything that
is assembled before-hand is “prefabricated”, whereas “modular” refers
to a level of design standardization, whereby elements fit together in
a coordinated fashion.
Prefabricated and Modular structures today adhere to the same local
building codes and restrictions as site-built constructions, use the
same UBC approved materials, and must be certified by a qualified
building inspector prior to occupancy.
The level of finished details in a modern prefabricated or modular
structure can vary per project from a pre-wired, plumbed and insulated
turn-key assembly to a kit that provides only the structural shell that
then requires all the same finishing work as a stick-built.
How prefab panels and modular design translate to a cost effective,
eco-friendly build is elementary. Factory mass production facilitates
bulk acquisition and transportation of raw materials. Only the finished
product ships to the final site, which saves fuel; material overages
and waste end up in other projects rather than the local landfill.
Transportation of workers is greatly reduced, as are on-site theft,
vandalism and weather delays. Standardization of modular designs and
engineering enhances quality control and 3D computer programs
facilitate customization. Standardization of assembly techniques and
thorough documentation, assembly instructions and field-training
compresses on-site assembly time lessening demands on local labor and
other resources.
What to Build With?
In addition to the prefabrication and design strategies employed, the
choice of what materials to use in building a structure has a major
impact on the eco footprint of the project. A study delivered to the
7th World Bamboo Congress in 2004 analyzed both the financial and
environmental costs of using Hardwoods, Steel, Concrete or Bamboo as
the primary structural element of construction in western countries.
The financial costs were found to all be similar but the environmental
costs were drastically reduced in the Bamboo option, especially
compared to steel, and even with the inclusion of shipping Bamboo
overseas from Asia.
Accordingly, Bamboo can help qualify for the LEED for New Construction
MR Credit 6 Rapidly Renewable Materials (materials and products made
from plants that are typically harvested within a ten-year cycle or
shorter) which requires a minimum of 2.5% of the total value of
building materials and products used in the project, based on
cost.
What’s Old is New
The utilization of Bamboo for home and commercial building is nothing
new in many parts of the world; however it is still not on the minds of
as many architects and construction companies as it should be. Bamboo
is the ultimate “Green” product. It is completely sustainable,
renewable and recyclable. Technically bamboo is a grass, the fastest
growing multi-cellular organism on Earth. Bamboo can be harvested
yearly after the first five to seven years of growth. Contrast this
with a typical hardwood forest that takes twenty-five to fifty years
before becoming productive. Bamboo, in twenty-five years, on a single
acre of land, will produce 1/3 more oxygen, 20 times the biomass yield
and enough material for 80 structures. The economic and environmental
cost savings are fantastic; a three-inch bamboo pole can replace any
four-by-four post and when properly joined together, bamboo can span
165 feet just as well as steel can, but at a significant reduction in
weight and environmental cost.
Bamboo became eligible for modern construction in 2004, when the
International Code Council certified the Structural Bamboo Poles
produced by Bamboo Technologies fully comply with International
Building Code (IBC), International Residential Code (IRC) and Uniform
Building Code (UBC) standards.
Structural Bamboo is vacuum-pressure treated with Borate (eco-friendly
salt solution) in order to alter the natural sugars and starch
rendering it inedible by insects. Properly weather proofed bamboo has a
life expectance as long as any approved construction
material.
Because Structural Bamboo has unique physical characteristics differing
from dimensional lumber (its round), unique structural engineering and
factory methods had to be pioneered to align it with modern
construction methods. The primary structural elements are the UBC
approved bamboo poles that get joined together to create a structural
framework so strong that the finished buildings are earthquake proof
and hurricane rated. To do this each end of the pole is slotted and a
steel tab gets inserted and bolted in place. The shape of the plate
determines the dimensionality of the pole combinations. Four 90 degree
angled steel plates tabbed into four bamboo poles create the frame for
a rectangular wall panel. A steel plate with 5 spokes radiating out is
the basis of a bamboo truss. Things get interesting fast when you
consider that bamboo poles don’t have to remain straight. Bamboo can be
curved when still green and the curve becomes fixed as the pole is
dried. Curved poles can be bolted together to create an amazing
combination of flowing structural elements that would be very expensive
to create using other materials.
Standardized dimensional structural elements like roof trusses and wall
panels get preassembled at dedicated workstations and are brought
together on the factory floor where the entire framework structure is
assembled. Plywood panels with split-open bamboo laminated to the
surface are added to flesh out the frame and finishing details are
added. The exterior bamboo siding gets three coats of Cetol, a
marine-grade varnish, and is very effective weather proofing. Once
complete, the entire structure is broken apart into individual panels
and carefully labeled for reassembly later. Each panel is designed to
fit into a standardized shipping container so the bamboo kit can go
anywhere in the world. All necessary parts and tools are included,
think: Resort-In-A-Box! Trained assembly teams are available to support
local labor. Assembly times vary with the complexity of the building,
but many of the kits come together to a structurally stable
weather-tight condition in a matter of days and greatly reduce a
project’s exposure to costly weather delays and vulnerability to local
labor issues.
A Picture Tells 10,000 Words
There’s a strong visual appeal to exposing bamboo on exterior and
interior surfaces as the natural, organic look of bamboo just screams
"Green". As well, in the “green” frenzy of today’s media environment,
there’s a workable high profile PR angle for the eco-sensitivity of a
project that uses bamboo as the primary structural
element.
However, there’s no requirement that a structural bamboo construction
be limited to the look of bamboo. Surfacing, from traditional stucco,
to natural earth plasters, to the new eco-friendly thermoplastic
biocomposite sheets, can be applied over fitted SIPs (Structural
Insulated Panels) to create an insulated structure with virtually any
desired look for virtually any climate. Anything and everything from
Plantation-style homes to Victorian mansions to Frank Lloyd Wright
inspired buildings can be created with prefabricated modular bamboo
panels.
It is easy to see why the prefabrication and modular construction
industry has exploded in the last ten years in both the residential and
the commercial building sectors, the cost saving can be significant.
Now is the time to use available technologies in conjunction with
selecting sustainable building materials like structural bamboo when
developing anything from a home to a hotel to create savings in carbon
consumption as well as dollars, and to present a green identity based
on substance to an evermore eco-centric public.
Sam
Small is Vice President of Developing Markets with Bamboo Technologies,
based in Maui, Hawaii. After a successful career in mass media,
culminating with 8 yrs service in the unique position of V.P. of
Broadcast Production at Prudential Financial where he directed and
edited over 200 national TV spots promoting the firm through one of the
largest public offerings in the history of Wall Street, Sam Small has
turned his sights towards promoting Bamboo as a sustainable and
globally appropriate construction material. Originally a customer of
Bamboo Technologies, Sam was so impressed with the product and the
company that he became directly involved. He has so far supervised the
assembly and finishing of three bamboo structures, and currently lives
in a bamboo house on Maui. Mr. Small can be contacted at 973-271-0788
or samsmall@bambootechnologies.com.
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