ABCM-CASE STUDY
STEEL STRUCTURE
CATERPILLAR HOUSE
GROUP -7
ATHARVA NENE-49
ROBIN MATHEW-38
SARANSH YADAV-82
SANDESH BRID-12
SIDDHANT KAMAT-34
PARAG VALECHA-79
MUNAZZA MULLA-44
ABOUT THE PROJECT
Architect’s multi-volume house in the
Andes foothills serves as a masterful
example of what can be built from
shipping containers
The house in Santiago de Chile, built
for an art collector and his family,
consists of four parallel volumes
resting on a concrete base.
Architects: Sebastián Irarrázaval
Area: 350 m²
Year: 2012
Structural Engineer:Pedro Bartolomé
Construction:Sebastián Irarrázaval
Arquitectos
Site Area:900 sqm
Associated Architect:Erick Caro
City:Lo Barnechea
Country:Chile
CONCEPT
CONCEPT
● Caterpillar House is located on a hillside just outside
Chile's capital city Santiago, and boasts views of the
Andes Mountains.
● The decision to use shipping containers as a primary
building material derives from a desire to both speed
up construction time, and reduce the overall cost of
the project.
● Owing to the owner's wishes for Caterpillar House to
blend in with the scenery as much as possible, some
sections of the home slope with the hillside.
● This results in an unusual interior layout, with each of
the children's rooms sporting an inclined nook, where
the bed is placed. The shipping containers were also
modified with multiple windows, skylights and
adjoining pieces.
● In order to reduce construction time and costs,
second hand shipping containers were used as follow:
Five 40 “standard containers, Six 20“ standard
containers and one 40“ open top container for the
swimming pool.
SITE PLAN
The proposed interstitial spaces increases the
house perimeter which allows most of the
times to have light and air entering the spaces
from at least two opposite sides. as a
consequence of this will, windows and doors
are aligned along axes that cut the stripes,
easing therefore air movement and also
creating visual integration construction phases
consisted in: firstly; placing the retaining walls
to create a horizontal plane to place the public
areas of the house. secondly; in mounting the
containers and ensemble them on top to place
the private areas and thirdly; to wrap the
containers with a unitarian material which at
the time that integrates the parts also creates
a ventilated façade that temperate the interior
spaces.the material palette was chosen having
in mind not only low cost materials but low
maintenance as well.
GROUND FLOOR PLAN FIRST FLOOR PLAN
STRATEGIES FOR DESIGN OF
THE HOUSE.
● The first one was to integrate it to the territory of this part of the
city where the presence of the Andes Mountain is extremely
strong both visually and tectonically.
Therefore the presence of the Andes was considered as an obvious
background worst to be highlighted and also as a sloped ground
needed to be negotiated.
● The second one was to allow the external air to run smoothly and
easily through the all house and its different parts In order to avoid
mechanical cooling.
● The strategy to achieve the proposed integration to the territory,
consisted in placing the volumes of the house as if they were
resting on the slope and allowing the volumes, lets say; to be
blended by the slope
● The strategy for improving air movement through the house
consisted in organizing the program along stripes and keeping
interstitial spaces among them for the circulation of both; the
inhabitants and the cool air that comes from the mountains.
● At the same time, the proposed interstitial spaces increases the
house perimeter which allows most of the times to have light and
air entering the spaces from at least two opposite sides.
● As a consequence of this will, windows and doors are aligned
along axes that cut the stripes, easing therefore air movement and
also creating visual integration
1. Placing the retaining walls to create a horizontal
C 2.
plane to place the public areas of the house.
In mounting the containers and ensemble them
on top to place the private areas
O 3. To wrap the containers with a unitarian material
which at the time that integrates the parts also
N creates a ventilated façade that temperate the
interior spaces.
4. Architectonic elements such as windows, doors,
S and skylights are rationalized and repeated all
over the house not just to reduce cost but also in
T order to create and integrated architectonic
peace.
R
U
C
T
I
O
N
CONSTRUCTION DETAILS
● The containers
are rested on
steel girders,
which are
supported on
steel columns,
rested on the
concrete
footings.
● Folded plate
steel staircase
has been
installed.
MATERIALS
COMPOSITION
Materials:
5 x 40 “standard shipping
containers, 6 x 20 “standard
shipping containers and 1 x
40 “ open top shipping
container , steel plates ,
concrete retaining walls,
and gypsum board , timber
wood.
The material palette was
chosen having in mind not
only low cost materials but
low maintenance as well.
In the election of materials it
was also important to
analyze their capacity to age
well an to incorporate time
passing as something that
adds value to material.
RESOURCES-
● https://www.archdaily.com/394846/caterpillar-house-sebastian-irarrazav
al-delpiano
● https://www10.aeccafe.com/blogs/arch-showcase/2013/07/13/caterpillar
-house-casa-oruga-in-lo-barnechea-santiago-de-chile-by-sebastian-irarr
azaval-arquitecto/
● https://www.azuremagazine.com/article/the-caterpillar-house/
