dror: QuaDror at design indaba

‘QuaDror’ by dror all images courtesy dror

we’re reporting directly from this year’s design indaba in cape town, south africa, where designboom participates as media partner – on now until the 25th of february, 2011. at the opening of the conference, studio dror has debuted ‘quadror‘ – a new structural truss system, that the studio has been developing for the past four years. the story of QuaDror started in 2006. when experimenting with the geometric configuration, dror benshetrit was initially interested only in its aesthetic and flexibility but soon recognized the structural integrity of the assembly. the simple geometry and interlocking members – four identical L-shaped pieces, either thin, resulting in a trestle structure or thick, resulting in a solid panel – allowed for a very flexible and versatile design.

the building block allows for rapid assembly, transitioning from closed and flat to open and self-standing. specific site conditions and requirements can be accommodated through a multitude of different configurations and arrangements. serving as a new tool suitable for many outlets of architecture and design, possible applications include relief structures, space dividers, acoustic barriers, and artistic installations.

QuaDror from Dror on Vimeo.

a team of collaborators and consultants collaborated in the research and development work of QuaDror, including metalab, structural engineer at arup, and stuart brodie from inneall technology limited.

QuaDror from Dror on Vimeo.

Building the QuaDror Wall from Dror on Vimeo.

barrier

building block

QuaDror from Dror on Vimeo. wall structure

dividing wall

it functions at several scales, from the small – a table base or room divider – to the large – a wall, a bridge support or structure for a house.

highway barrier

when used in multiples, these forms are not only as stable as a solid cube (dror states that the finished structure can attain the strength of a correspondingly wide concrete or steel structure while using only 20% of the material), but also have acoustical properties, as in a highway sound barrier.

‘QuaDror pop-up museum’ in cape town design proposal

‘pop-up dwelling’

the application about which the new-york-based israeli designer dror enshetrit is most excited is that of emergency housing. the QuaDror system allows the shipment of 1750 QuaDror kits to build 1750 QuaDror relief houses in one 40 foot container only. the QuaDror home is a kit that includes instructions, tools and universal joints, to which structural parts of wood and bamboo can be attached. dror plans to release the joint as a shareware license for distressed areas.

building 2

the QuaDror house options range from 900 ft2 to 3000 ft2 and are able to be on grade or elevated. due to the separation of skin and structure, different options are available for the type and location of solid and glazed walls, allowing for a variety of configurations and appearances.

‘QD 01-06’ villa prefabricated dwelling

the housing units employ the QuaDror interlocking frame technology comprised of eight laminated wood beams. taking advantage of the collapsibility of the framess, the modular housing units are pre-fabrictaed and shipped to the site flat. to erect, the corners are secured to form four triangular trusses, which will support the downward and lateral forces acting on the dwelling.

building 1

the first QuaDror Home kit is just beginning production, and the studio hopes to build its first houses in sierra leone and brazil next year. read more here.

home study