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After our successful trip to Ghana, RHIT-EWB
voted for a new project in the Dominican
Republic. Below is a detailed description of
all of the potential projects to be
completed over the next few years.
In order to properly prepare for
construction over the summer of 2010,
RHIT-EWB sent a small team of students in
late November to the village in the
Dominican Republic to gather vital
information for the project. Things such as
local prices and availability of
construction materials and skilled laborers,
collection of soil and water samples for
testing, and the overall feasibility of the
project were determined. The team of
students returned with their findings and
shared them with the rest of RHIT-EWB, so
that design and planning for construction
could begin.
The first phase of Project
Justice involved building a roof on the
existing building next to the operating
clinic. As per Engineers Without Borders
protocol, the roof needs to be sustainable
and use technology available to the local
populace. In order for the roof to be
sustainable it needs to withstand whatever
nature throws at it. This includes
hurricanes, earthquakes, and termites. The
roof also needs to be functional and
appealing. In order for us to meet all these
goals professionally and in a timely
fashion, we partnered with Architecture for
Humanity in the design and construction of
the roof.
For the roof to withstand
hurricanes, it needs to have sufficient
weight and anchoring. To insure this, our
design used several bolts extending from
under the existing concrete structure
attached to heavy duty anchors in the roof
to provide a cohesive tension path covering
the entire roof. The racking of the roof in
the wind conditions is prevented by several
shear walls anchored to the top of the main
part of the building. The corrugated metal
roofing is nailed into plywood fixed to the
top of the rafters. The windows installed
can easily be opened and closed to prevent
rain from coming in.
When arriving on the
project site, several inevitable hiccups
developed in the construction of our planned
building. The invaluable experience and
professionalism of our project mentor
allowed us to overcome all problems that we
encountered within the time of the
implementation trip.
In the end, after several
redesigns, the roof was constructed while
still being up to standards. The new roof
was several feet shorter in several
dimensions, but columns were constructed to
help support the weight of the roof during a
hurricane or earthquake.
While the roof was
constructed on time, the deadlines were
close. The hard work of all the traveling
members from EWB and AFH was commendable,
and the community support and work was
incredible. All of the students who traveled
learned a great deal not only about
construction, but also about perseverance
and hard work. We are all glad that we were
able to do the work that we did, but are
also thankful that we were provided with the
opportunity. As a chapter, we are looking
forward to continuing the project this
upcoming year and cannot wait to see the
final product in action.
If you have any questions about these projects or would like more information,
feel free to contact the EWB-RHIT presidents, Alex Morelli,
or Ryan Oliver.
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