• Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

  • Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

    Hanchenping Studio, CUMT

of

Healthcare

Hanchenping Studio's award-winning, flat-packed, epidemic prevention hospital in Shanghai

On a level surface, it takes three hours for two workers to assemble a building module

by Hannah Holt 17 May 2022 Modern Methods of Construction (MMC)

Since the scale, time, and place of epidemics are difficult to predict, a temporary medical building that can be used for a long time can be extremely useful. Research has shown that suitable epidemic prevention hospitals can be constructed through the rapid combination of modules.

Such buildings should possess the following characteristics: easy for storage and transportation, suitable for the treatment of infectious diseases, applicable for multiple sites, and environmentally-friendly. Equally important, adjustable building scale, time-saving construction and demolition, and low requirement for construction personnel are also indispensable characteristics of these buildings.

‘The Deformable modularized COVID-19 Epidemic Prevention Hospital in Shanghai’ was the WAFX 2021 ‘Health’ Category winner.  It was designed by Professor Chenping Han and his team from the School of Architecture and Design at China University of Mining and Technology. The entrusting party of this project is Wuxi Environmental Sanitation Services CO., LTD. China.

The project compresses various architectural components into a module based on the prototype of a 20 ft international standard container through a series of design methods such as integration, separation, movement, replacement, opening and closing, deformation, expansion, lift, and rotation. 

After deformation and expansion, the module covers an area of 76.15 sq m. It is equipped with negative pressure ventilation, sufficient daylight, separate channels for the infected and medical staff, a buffer area, toilets, and two standard isolation wards with four beds. 

Its space design meets the design specifications and requirements of hospitals for infectious diseases. Only lamps, display screens, and simple medical equipment are to be connected and installed on site.

With a total construction area of 750.5 sq m, the project consists of the isolation ward area (24 beds), the medical staff work area, and auxiliary functional areas for power, water, ventilation, and oxygen supply. The project core is the isolation negative pressure ward, and treatment, office, cleaning, ventilation, and energy as the auxiliary modules.

This hospital is best suited to flat and solid sites. Without the destruction of the site due to the laying of the building foundation and pipeline, it takes only 2 workers and 3 hours to complete the assembly of a module (including equipment and facilities). Since the installation of each building component is carried out in strict sequence, even less skilled workers can carry out construction with some simple training. In addition, although the lifting of the module requires the use of a light crane, the module can be unfurled and dismantled with common tools and simple scaffolds.

The project also offers two options for the post-pandemic disposal of the building: one is to take it down and store it for future use; and the other is to give it new uses and functions on site, such as hotels, bars, and cafes.


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