TENTS AND WIND - A SERIOUS PROBLEM

It is our most sincere desire that the million of Haitians living in tents during the upcoming storm season do not suffer the inequities of other refugess (shown in picture, Jordanian refugees after a wind storm).

VARIETY AND ADAPTABILITY WITH 'ABREFS'

Spontaneous groupings adapting to both in-place sociology and ground conditions are the main feature of our 'ABREFS' -Economy of land use results and, when the users have a hand in putting these together,  pride of ownership, albeit temporarily, an attractive bonus.

ABREFS

ABREF is a sturdy tent that can be adapted for groupings. These have several advantages:

• Grouped tents combine each unit's high resistance to wind pressure to allow for stability under gusts of over 80 mph (see wind testing of tents)
• Because of the ziggurat shape of these, the lanes between the clusters cut down wind speed, allowing users to walk with less difficulty under high winds.
• The formation of wind protected courtyards allow for some privacy in an area that can be made insect-free, ideal for some cooking, child play or any function common to all 6 adjoining units (i.e. storage, water, etc...). In cold areas, we are working on a concept where a central heat source distributes hot air to the six neighboring tents.
  
  
  
  
  This grouping #8.1 (8 units + 1 courtyard) is ideal for high densities that still manage to leave some privacy. With close to 40% ground occupancy, this configuration can reach a site occupancy of up to 400 persons per acre.
  

There are hundreds of combinations that would greatly benefit special site morphologies, like hillside, wooded, rocky etc...We are preparing a movie showing a few of these special cases, so come back here.