Bamboo Construction Qualitative Indicators for Housing Case Study in Bali, Indonesia
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UNIVERSITY OF LIEGE | FACULTY OF APPLIED SCIENCES ACADEMIC YEAR 2018‐2019 BAMBOO CONSTRUCTION QUALITATIVE INDICATORS FOR HOUSING CASE STUDY IN BALI, INDONESIA Master Thesis in order to obtain a master degree in Engineering and Architecture by Audrey MERTENS Promoter Catherine ELSEN Co‐promoter Jean‐Marc FRANSSEN Jury members S. REITER J.‐M. BLEUS F. COURTEJOIE Bamboo construction : Qualitative indicators for housing Case study in Bali, Indonesia BAMBOO CONSTRUCTION QUALITATIVE INDICATORS FOR HOUSING Case study in Bali, Indonesia BY AUDREY MERTENS UNIVERSITE DE LIEGE | 2018 – 2019 MASTER IN ENGINEERING AND ARCHITECTURE ABSTRACT : The present study consists of trying to understand what the bamboo has to offer as well as what its limits are. The location was chosen in Bali, Indonesia, because it is currently a place where we can find a high concentration of bamboo craftsmanship and bamboo factories. The material is locally available and a couple of emblematic buildings are located there. Bamboo does not seem to be used much by the local Balinese population as a traditional construction material for housing. This master thesis confirms this statement and answers non‐exhaustively why. Furthermore, it seeks to evaluate the perception Balinese people have of bamboo construction, particularly for housing. In order to do so, we establish qualitative indicators as guidelines for the evaluation of the perception of bamboo housing. The methods we choose to learn about the Balinese people’s perception are the questionnaire survey, the in‐depth interview and the commented walk. The first one, the 24‐question‐survey, aims at a large public and got 57 participants. It collects data on the common materials used in Bali, the ideal material participants would choose for a new building and then evaluated the perception of bamboo under various angles. The second method, the in‐depth interview targets two small samples: 3 expert actors in bamboo construction, each one in their own way, and a sample of 4 various chosen profiles for an a priori experiment. The experts sample includes a bamboo structural engineer, a bamboo architect and a bamboo house owner. Each one of them brings an overview of their domain regarding bamboo. This work also benefits of another bamboo expert’s opinion: Elora Hardy agreed that we include one of her speeches in the present study. Thus she broaden the results with her experience. The last method, the commented walk, is an ethnological approach consisting of collecting the users’ on‐site comments. It aims to capture aspects of the sensory perception. It was conducted with the same sample as the in‐depth interview a priori of the 4 chosen participants. This method was implemented in order to retrieve some sensory perception indicators from the participants. The following indicators came out of these experiments: the sociocultural context, perceived costs of a bamboo building, perceived lifespan of a bamboo building, perceived safety and flammability of a bamboo building, local availability of the material, perceived sustainability of the material, sensory perception in bamboo spaces, maintenance of bamboo buildings, lack of airtightness, and finally creativity, beauty and originality created by the use of bamboo. Each of these indicators brought up an aspect of how bamboo is perceived and whether or not it is accepted as suitable for housing. This master thesis could be used as a ground of reflexion for architects or administration members wishing to support bamboo projects in tropical regions. 2 | 220 Bamboo construction : Qualitative indicators for housing Case study in Bali, Indonesia ACKNOWLEDGMENTS : I would like to express my gratitude to all of those who collaborated in the realization of this master thesis. I am particularly eager to thank my promoter, Catherine Elsen and co‐promoter, Jean‐Marc Franssen. I would also like to thank the company Asali Bali, especially Olivier Betting, Thierry Cayot and Severine Orfila, who welcomed me and helped me gain a foothold in Bali and on bamboo construction. Let me also thank Elora Hardy and her family, real precursors to bamboo construction in Bali, for their strong support during my stay in Indonesia. I was also allowed to use a recording of the talk Elora gave in Seminyak on the 16th of April 2019. This was an incredible source of information for me. Of course, everybody in Bali who participated in the study, especially Chiko, Ade, Devi, Ayu, Ngurah and Putra have my gratitude. The study would not have been possible without their support. I also express my gratitude to my family and close friends who helped and supported me all along, in particular Philippe Mertens, Geneviève Delville, Alexis Feutry, Fantine Fontaine, Thérèse Landerloos and Florence Mertens. A lot of thanks to Chen Qi who helped me as well, together with Fantine, win the INBAR Bamboo Construction Competition. I also thank the shīfu bamboo master who helped us assemble the pavilion. Finally, I would like to thank all my classmates whose participation at this university journey has given me such unforgettable memories. 3 | 220 Bamboo construction : Qualitative indicators for housing Case study in Bali, Indonesia FOREWORD We are at a time in human history when climate changes and environmental issues should be a matter of primary concern as the future of many species, fauna and flora, is at stake. The construction sector counts amongst the most polluting industries across the world. As the future generation of building trades, we should be aware of the impact we are going to have on our surroundings. In order to build sustainable housing and buildings in general, one factor we should not leave out is whether or not the users of the edifice will get a grip on the designed space. In architecture, the user‐centred approaches are slowly challenging the traditional mindsets that usually place the architects as almighty artists. Thus connecting the designers and the users, asking them about their opinion on possible material for their home, was something that seemed crucial to me. In western culture, through large mass‐communication media such as the TED talks (Technology, Entertainment and Design talks) and fancy exhibition buildings, bamboo is being advertised and largely promoted. But whilst travelling in Asia, I observed very few remaining vernacular constructions in this material and local people did not seem fond of bamboo as a construction or structural element. Although from my point of view, the real challenge would be to promote bamboo construction for local populations – that is, not only for touristic buildings but also for housing. This being a scientific dissertation, the research will be oriented towards a vision as objective as possible. 4 | 220 Bamboo construction : Qualitative indicators for housing Case study in Bali, Indonesia CONTENT Table of figures .................................................................................................................. 9 Chapter I – Introduction .................................................................................................. 11 1.1. Problematic ................................................................................................... 11 1.2. Focus and Limits ............................................................................................ 12 1.3. Reader’s Handbook ....................................................................................... 13 Chapter II – State of the art ............................................................................................. 14 2.1. Bamboo Architectural Engineering and Construction .................................. 15 2.1.1. Temporary Buildings ...................................................................... 16 2.1.2. Emblematic Buildings ..................................................................... 16 2.1.3. Personal experience with bamboo ................................................ 18 2.2. Bamboo species suitable for construction ................................................... 22 2.3. Treatments .................................................................................................... 23 2.4. Mechanical properties .................................................................................. 29 2.4.1. Characteristic strength values ....................................................... 29 2.4.2. Calculation of design values ........................................................... 31 2.4.3. Buckling .......................................................................................... 32 2.4.4. Serviceability limit state (SLS) ........................................................ 32 2.4.5. Foundations ................................................................................... 32 2.4.6. Connexions ..................................................................................... 32 2.4.7. Engineered bamboo elements ....................................................... 33 2.4.8. Literature gaps in mechanical properties ...................................... 34 2.5. Balinese Context ........................................................................................... 35 2.5.1. Bamboo Architecture in Bali .......................................................... 35 2.5.2. Geographic and Demographic context .......................................... 37 2.5.3. Balinese traditional architecture ................................................... 37 2.5.4. Emergence context .......................................................................