News

EWB Update: Project Indonesia

April 24, 2007

In November 2006, Cal Poly Engineers Without Borders was asked to help redevelop two communities in Indonesia that remained devastated by the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami.

Civil engineering students Phaidra Rice, president of EWB Cal Poly, and Amanda Hall immediately accepted the project. “I had been looking for some way to really help with the disaster. Finally, I was given the perfect opportunity to help,” said Rice.

Since that time, 13 students have joined the effort to help EWB Cal Poly rebuild a struggling community on the Indonesian island of Nias, where less than half of all homes have been rebuilt.

The project aims to construct 2,000 to 4,000 new homes—EWB Cal Poly is designing the structures from the ground up. Design challenges include cultural concerns, structural stability, and cost. The group is receiving help and training from the Center for Vocational Building Technology (CVBT), an NGO based in Thailand.

“The key to this project is the materials that we are using,” said Rice. “The homes will be built with reinforced masonry bricks that are made by compressing soil and cement. Because no heat energy is required to produce the bricks, they are a sustainable and cost efficient alternative to traditional building materials.” One of the first project tasks is determining how to arrange the bricks for maximum strength.