TrailerWrap
During the 4th year of my undergraduate architecture career at the University of Colorado Boulder, I was fortunate enough to be involved in a design build project. The project known as TrailerWrap consisted of the design and construction of a sustainable trailer home; one that explores the possibilities of adaptive reuse, affordability, and sustainable design. The TrailerWrap project lasted for over a year, with the complete design finished in the fall semester, and the construction lasting through the summer to the following fall. I worked on the project for almost a year, assisting in the conception and construction.
The project reexamined the ever present mobile home park as a model for an alternative to suburban sprawl. With the use of recycled materials including a recycled trailer chassis, this pilot project sought to provide users with a kit of parts, making it a feasible permanent housing solution for the less fortunate and potentially a solution for natural disaster victims. This project also explored the idea of outdoor living space in a trailer park type setting, with the addition of an outdoor room, in an attempt to promote social interaction in a typically less social environment.
Being a part of this design build project gave me hands on experience that I feel few architects get in school. I was able to better understand how buildings are assembled and what kind of effort goes into the construction of a home. This project plus the two years of construction experience elsewhere have given me excellent exposure to the construction industry which is integrally related to the field of architecture.
For more information and photos, please see the TrailerWrap website at www.trailerwrap.net
In addition, an early article regarding the construction of Trailer Wrap can be found here.