Affordable housing from shipping containers

Jetson Green calls our attention to a new venture that turns shipping containers into affordable housing.

For those who are new to container architecture or wonder about the size, they have been used by the US Army, building contractors, and relief organizations for short-term office or housing for many, many years. Two lengths are generally offered, 20′ or 40′ long, 8′ wide, and either 8’6″ or 9’6″ high.

A new group, the New Mexico-based and for profit PFNC has built a demonstration project and hopes to build as many as 3000 units annually. As this article from Fabricator makes clear, shipping container architecture has a lengthy history:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/g/a/2006/06/16/carollloyd.DTL
http://www.nytimes.com/2004/08/08/weekinreview/08south.html?ex=1249617600&en=a21ed9a9e345ad96&ei=5090&partner=rssuserland

Looking at the PFNC floor plans (single and multifamily), my first concern is ventilation. The plan is a rough shotgun-style home but I wonder if the door openings are sufficient to provide good ventilation. Certainly the placement of the kitchen and bathroom in the center of the unit would require some type of mechanical ventilation in a multifamily configuration. I would add that the full-size appliances, while sensible for long term, barrack-style housing, take up an extraordinary amount of space and eliminates public space within the unit.

More than anything, the project reminded me of Raines Court, by the Peabody Trust. This fascinating 61-unit, 127-module multifamily project was constructed in 50 weeks at a North London infill location. Many units consist of two modules (one service, one sleeping), which arrive fully built and ready for installation into the skeletal core.

http://www.access-steel.com/Dev/Discovery/LinkLookup.aspx?id=SP026&orfl=en

Using a similar model, the PFNC design could be expanded to provide a dogtrot-style design of two containers separated by a breezeway to provide greater ventilation and a larger social area for residents and their neighbors.

(HT: Jetson Green)