ZEMCH 2015 - International Conference Proceedings | Page 303

it did not bring any special design ideas to be used in the project.
A visit to the project site was one of the activities conducted prior to the design development. It
was very profitable, mainly to the UniMelb students, as it provided them with the reality of the
project and production of the PMCMV. The participants were in contact with My Home My Life
Program production site, where they could observe some negative aspects, such as monotony
of the implantation, same pattern of house units, long blocks, insufficient public infrastructure,
few connections to the city, no commercial service, little interaction between residential lots and
green area and no public transportation in the vicinity. The negative aspects were significantly
reflected on their project proposal, as observed in the result of 4 projects developed. All groups
implemented solutions in the project for the negative aspects pointed out in the site visit, such
as green areas among the blocks, small dimension of blocks, area of public gathering and entertainment with nursery, hospital, elementary school and public greening space. Regarding the
mobility system, they proposed different modalities considering low-income people, as priority
to pedestrians and bicycles rather than to public transportation and automobiles. Another suggestion was a green common area among lots destined to food production without pesticides
(fruits and vegetables). This idea would provide healthy food and may also be a commercial activity for families. All projects considered some lots for mixed functions (living and commercial)
and the housing unit was proposed to be flexible with enough space for working and commercial
activities. As an example, the mass plan of Group A is shown in Figure 9.

Figure 9 - Mass plan of Group A.
Four different constructive systems were proposed for the workshop activities: Wood-Light-Frame
(group A), Structural Masonry (B), Cast-in-place Concrete Walls (C) and CLT - Cross Laminated Timber (D). Such systems were adopted for comparison of costs involved, CO2 emission impacts and
energy levels incorporated in each material, as well as possibilities of constructive solutions. Indeed, a five-day-workshop is a very short time for the design of affordable social housing with the
ZEMCH concept and technical specifications of each system in the Brazilian context. The result
of 4 projects did not highlight the technical aspects involved in the production chain of each
system. Likewise, environmental impact indicators associated with construction materials and
systems may not be considered.

Exploration of the ZEMCH workshop USP 2015

301