The Aussie surfer building modular homes that can survive cyclones
Once a builder of surfboards, Nev Hyman is now trying something a little larger on land.
The founder of Nev House, Hyman heads a company that builds modular, pre-fabricated structures that can serve as homes, schools and medical centres in the regions of the world that need them most.
On Friday, the company won the prestigious Good Design Award for Sustainability.
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The project began when Hyman became increasingly concerned about waste in the ocean. "I've spent my whole life around the ocean, and seen the damage done by waste plastic," he told Mashable Australia.
In 2004, he invested in a plastics recycling company. He believed it was possible to build low-cost housing out of recycled materials, but he wasn't exactly sure how to go about it.
That's where the architect, Ken McBryde, came in. Working with McBryde since 2012, Hyman was able to start developing structures that were not only strong and cheap, but suitable for the cultural needs of the places they would be erected, particularly as part of disaster relief.
Importantly, the "Nev House" can be built rapidly. It can be erected in five days or less, and deconstructed and moved to another location if community needs change.
After years of trials, Nev House had its first significant real world test in Vanuatu, which had much of its infrastructure devastated by Cyclone Pam in 2015.
In 2015, Nev House built one structure in Port Vila, the country's capital, to prove they could construct a school in five days, Hyman said, but the real test began in 2016.
Starting in early April, the company began erecting 15 structures on Vanuatu's Tanna Island, which he hopes will be completed by early June.
Building in Vanuatu means the structures have to be able to withstand a Category 5 cyclone and provide a safe house for locals, not only a pleasant place to live. According to Hyman, the building's sturdy frame and the mechanisms by which it's tied down means it won't be pulled out of the ground by high wind.
It's also appropriate for tropical temperatures. Thanks to the structure's many louvres, there is considerable air movement through the building.
According to Hyman, the original plan was to have a house that was built entirely from recycled materials, but ultimately that plan didn't work out.
"What we struggled with, was that we couldn't get the structural integrity for the load bearing beams," he said. "About 60 percent of the house is made from wood-plastic composite that use one or two codes of plastics that are [found] in the environment." They also use a sustainable timber, he added.
Nev House is not a charity, but Hyman claimed they can deliver their buildings for a cheaper price than other cyclone-resistant housing, which is often built on concrete slab. Materials are still relatively expensive to transport, however, due to the remoteness of the building sites, he explained.
"The cost of a school room is approximately $50,000," he said. "The more we use local labour, the more we can bring the cost down."
The company is in talks with governments, aid agencies and charities around the world to find potential clients. The recent project in Vanuatu was funded by a Hong Kong-based charitable organisation, which he said did not want to be named.
Hyman hopes Nev House will eventually become bigger that just a few houses. "We want to create a bit of a movement behind what we're doing," he said. "We want to draw attention to affordable housing around the world."
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Ariel Bogle was an associate editor with Mashable in Australia covering technology. Previously, Ariel was associate editor at Future Tense in Washington DC, an editorial initiative between Slate and New America.
