Air Force Institute of Technology AFIT Scholar Theses and Dissertations Student Graduate Works 3-16-2006 Indigenous Architecture for Expeditionary Installations Matthew B. Hutchings Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.afit.edu/etd Part of the Architectural Engineering Commons Recommended Citation Hutchings, Matthew B., "Indigenous Architecture for Expeditionary Installations" (2006). Theses and Dissertations. 3383. https://scholar.afit.edu/etd/3383 This Thesis is brought to you for free and open access by the Student Graduate Works at AFIT Scholar. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of AFIT Scholar. For more information, please contact [email protected]. INDIGENOUS ARCHITECTURE FOR EXPEDITIONARY INSTALLATIONS THESIS Matthew B. Hutchings, Major, USAF AFIT/GEM/ENV/06M-06 DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE AIR UNIVERSITY AIR FORCE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY Wright-Patterson Air Force Base, Ohio APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE; DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED i The views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the United States Air Force, Department of Defense or U.S. Government. i AFIT/GEM/ENV/06M-06 INDIGENOUS ARCHITECTURE FOR EXPEDITIONARY INSTALLATIONS THESIS Presented to the Faculty Department of Systems and Engineering Management Graduate School of Engineering and Management Air Force Institute of Technology Air University Air Education and Training Command In Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Master of Science (Engineering Management) Matthew B. Hutchings, BArch Major, USAF March 2006 APPROVED FOR PUBLIC RELEASE; DISTRIBUTION UNLIMITED ii AFIT/GEM/ENV/06M-06 INDIGENOUS ARCHITECTURE FOR EXPEDITIONARY INSTALLATIONS Matthew B. Hutchings, BArch Major, USAF Approved: //SIGNED// 10 March 2006 Lt Col Ellen C. England, PhD (Chairman) date //SIGNED// 10 March 2006 Alfred E. Thal, Jr., PhD (Member) date //SIGNED// 16 March 2006 Capt Brian J. Ballweg, MArch (Member) date iii AFIT/GEM/ENV/06M-06 Abstract United States (U.S.) outpost building after World War II tended to neglect local design in favor of imported American style and at the expense of efficiency and local acceptance (Gillem, 2005: 70). The numerous expeditionary installations established throughout the Middle East in the Global War on Terrorism (GWOT) offer a clean slate for transition to a policy that favors sustainable design as well as host nation acceptance through the use of indigenous architecture. By investigating desert indigenous architecture, low-tech design elements could be rediscovered and combined with modern technology to build new, environmentally-responsible buildings that are identifiable by the local culture. The potential of indigenous architecture was investigated by comparing its energy performance, force protection and fire safety characteristics, and ease of procurement to the same criteria for a standard prefabricated metal building. The core of the research was a literature review of current Department of Defense (DoD) construction standards and an examination of past and present examples of desert architecture including the Middle East and the southwestern U.S. Architectural drawings for a typical administration facility were created to show how traditional building materials and methods could be employed to match or exceed current standards. Results indicated that indigenous design offers advantages in energy performance and force protection, but initial cost and procurement time are not favorable. Therefore, selection of the optimum building construction technique depends on decision-maker values. iv Table of Contents Page Abstract ......................................................................................................................iv Table of Contents .........................................................................................................v List of Figures ............................................................................................................ vii List of Tables ...............................................................................................................x I. Introduction ............................................................................................................1 1.1 Background.......................................................................................................1 1.2 Problem Identification ......................................................................................4 1.3 Research Objectives..........................................................................................8 1.4 Approach/Methodology ....................................................................................9 1.5 Scope.................................................................................................................9 1.5 Significance.....................................................................................................10 1.5 Summary.........................................................................................................10 II. Literature Review..................................................................................................11 2.1 Historical Overview........................................................................................11 2.2 Current Policies and Practices ........................................................................13 2.3 Sustainable Design Overview.........................................................................22 2.4 Indigenous Architecture..................................................................................24 2.5 Architectural Design .......................................................................................44 III. Methodology........................................................................................................52 3.1 Research Objective Definition.......................................................................52 3.2 Methodology Choice......................................................................................52 3.3 Case Study Design .........................................................................................53 3.4 Quality Assurance..........................................................................................55 3.5 Methodology Summary .................................................................................57 IV. Results and Discussion .........................................................................................58 4.1 Introduction....................................................................................................58 4.2 Sample Design ...............................................................................................66 4.3 Comparison of the Building Techniques .......................................................78 v Page V. Conclusions..........................................................................................................89 5.1 Overview........................................................................................................89 5.2 Characteristics, Benefits, and Disadvantages ................................................90 5.3 Limitations .....................................................................................................92 5.4 Future Research .............................................................................................93 5.5 Conclusions....................................................................................................96 Appendix A. Heat Transfer Calculations....................................................................97 Appendix B. Indigenous Design Cost Estimate........................................................100 Bibliography ..............................................................................................................102 Vita.............................................................................................................................106 vi List of Figures Figure Page Chapter 1 1.1. Prepositioned Assets ............................................................................................3 1.2. Prefabricated Building .........................................................................................3 1.3. Barriers.................................................................................................................6 Chapter 2 2.1. Building Density ................................................................................................12 2.2. Architectural Style .............................................................................................13 2.3. Revetment Materials ..........................................................................................17 2.4. Reinforced Masonry...........................................................................................17 2.5. Protective Polymer Coating ...............................................................................18 2.6. Sacrificial Panels................................................................................................18 2.7. Prefabricated Metal Buildings ...........................................................................20 2.8. Typical Masonry Unit Construction ..................................................................21 2.9. Thermal Mass.....................................................................................................26