Pocket Home – A tiny abode amidst the dense concrete jungle

Pocket Home – A tiny abode amidst the dense concrete jungle

The solution proposed must be modular and temporary since the land may be vacant for a limited time period. It must be built to provide living space to people on a rental basis, for short durations. The assembly and disassembly of the housing units must be efficient.

The concept for this space can be unconventional with innovation in form, layout, or interior elements. The design of the housing must be compact with maximum space utilization. The furniture must be modular with an ambiance of comfort and convenience of use.

The aim is to use the unusually oriented, leftover plots to create a cohesive design that can cater to the need of home in the city. Daylight and ventilation must be well-designed to make the spaces feel bigger and more open. It must be less resource-intensive and economical for easy maintenance.

Design Objectives

The design should aim at creating a new way of living. The design can completely disregard/challenge the way houses are made currently.

Modular: Temporary housing solution to bring vacant land into use.

Optimization: Optimum use of available carpet area.

Basics: Natural Light and Natural Ventilation

Contextualization: Anchorage to the chosen site in terms of climate etc. and culture.

Areas:

The project should comprise 12 modular living units. The units will be rented out individually to different people as per their needs for not more than 6 months duration.

The following programmatic outline is the point to begin your design at. You can add a couple of more functions and activities in relevance to the competition brief – however, the number of living units shall remain fixed.

● The area of each modular living unit must not be more than 30 sq.m floor space (Total 12 units x 30 sq.m maximum = 360 sq.m modular living unit floor area). The height limits are up to the participants for a single module as long as they are comfortable for human habitation as per standards. The entire floor space of a single module (30 sq.m) must be on one level only. (Single-level module only)

● Each housing unit shall be designed for one or two persons and provided with spaces for living, sleeping, cooking, and bathroom.

● Ancillary activities: About 15-20 sq.m of space for a reception desk/lobby, a small office for security, and a staff toilet must be provided to manage the pocket housing booking and service provision. (This does not have to be modular)

● Shared amenities like a staircase, lifts, plumbing shafts, services, HVAC, storage, are not included in the 30 sq.m floor space limit of living units and are up to the participants to plan on based on project needs. There is no need for technical detailing of these elements, just marking the massing shall be enough.