Pre-Fab Social Housing, Borneo, Malaysia

Any system must be hyper-efficient to meet the strict budget. The panelised system will be factory manufactured to high tolerances, preventing delays often associated with building from scratch on site. We will ensure our system is extremely simple and easy to erect on site, minimising excess material, waste, and labour. A bespoke steel panel would be recommended to deliver a successful build for both initial slum-housing and future forsale phases. The bespoke panel would be similar to that of existing steel SIP panels, with their light weight and water resistant materiality however the insulation would be adapted to the environment, as it is recommended to use local natural materials for insulation in order to create the most efficient sound and heat insulation in a tropical location. We propose to develop a bespoke panel suitable for the high climate and the humidity of Malaysia. Materiality, ventilation and orientation are key to prevent over-heating in the dwellings in this environment. A modified system with sounds and heat resistant insulation would demonstrate to the Malaysian government that the product we would deliver would be successful, easy to replicate and fit for purpose. Traditional Malay housing has a long and successful tradition of comfortable and simple housing. We believe that tapping in to these traditional time-worn methods through thoughtful and sensitive modern design will significantly enhance our offering. Our first proposal demonstrates the ability for post construction addition and alteration by residents as families change and grow. This will allow the homes to extend beyond normal life spans by being adaptable and expandable. Inter Urban Studios are also accomplished master planners. Since site layout and orientation are very important in the Malaysian climate we can also offer our services to plan the communities around the housing. Coupled with our climatic and cultural research, the ability to design and deliver an appropriate prefabricated system, our aesthetic approach and our master planning, we can offer a complete turnkey architectural service which in turn demonstrates this to the Malaysian government. At Inter Urban Studios we revolve the design process around budget, purpose, and the local environment, creating a bespoke design to match the clients needs. We propose a dwelling prototype which is affordable, easy to build, scalable, transferable, adaptable, and appropriate to local climate and cultural norms.