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   ARTS Building Center · VSBK · MCR Tile Maker
 · Compressed Earth Blocks · White Papers ·
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ARTS Building Center
 • VSBK
 • MCRT
 • Compressed Earth Block
 • Concrete Block
 • Ferrocement Roofing
 • Buildings

VSBK
 • VSBK Brochure
 • Preamble
 • Environmental Impact
 • Advantages of VSBK

MCR Tile Maker
 • Brochure
 • Tile Maker
 • Product
 • Production Process
 • Buildings

Compressed Earth Blocks
 • Preamble
 • Product
 • Production Process

White Papers
 • Articles
 • Proposals
 • Other Categories

Preamble

The following technologies on ‘Shelter Products’ have been developed by Development Alternatives and are desirable for the following reasons:

§     They provide a means of employment and income generating opportunities, utilizing locally available materials, skills, manpower and management methods;

§     They provide building materials for making pucca structures, that will improve the standard of living, by enhancing the self-assurance and confidence of the rural dwellers, who otherwise live in tattered and thatched, wobbly huts, at present, and

§     They provide an opportunity for enterprise development, inherently low in monetary cost;

§     They utilize renewable energy sources

§     They are self-sustaining and promote self-reliance.

The advanced program involves development and dissemination of the Vertical Shaft Brick Kiln (VSBK) technology, which was first developed in China as an energy efficient, environment-friendly and economically viable means of producing high quality bricks.


ARTS Building Center


Click on image to enlarge

A ‘Building Center’ is a grass-root level technology transfer mechanism for propagating cost effective and environment friendly building technologies. The main objectives are:

§     Function as a technology transfer center in the field of housing, building & development that disseminates information on cost effective and environment friendly technology, especially in rural areas;

§     ‘Skill Upgradation & Training Center’ for masons, artisans, carpenters and other building work force trades in various cost effective and environment friendly building materials & technologies

§     Manufacturing & Distribution Outlet’ that makes available building components to end user, including public agencies and individual home builders;

§     Provide ‘Design Consultancy & Services’ for matching technology to local situations

§     Undertake field studies for development of appropriate, cost-effective and environment friendly building materials and construction techniques adapted to local situations

At present, we shall focus on the following ‘Shelter Technologies’:

§     Compressed Earth Blocks Technology

§     Micro-concrete Roofing Tiles Technology

§     Concrete Block Technology

§     Ferro-cement Roofing Technology


Sankalp VSBK

Vertical Shaft Brick Kilns (VSBK) provides for cleaner brick production. Current technologies for brick production such as clamps, downdraught kilns and Bull’s Trench Kilns (BTK) consume large quantities of fuel such as coal, firewood and other biomass inputs. The devastating effect of the pollution caused by huge amounts of emissions from the brick industry has attracted the attention of regulatory agencies, who have issued deadlines after which the polluting kilns have either to clean up or to close down permanently.


VSBK Technology represents a very high-energy efficient method of firing bricks resulting in an energy saving of 30 % compared to BTK and more than 50% compared to clamps. The fired quality is better than the quality of bricks fired in other traditional kilns such as clamps.


Sankalp MCR Tile Maker

The Sankalp/TARA Tile Maker is used to produce micro-concrete roofing tiles (MCRT).


Roofs with MCR Tiles will resist cyclonic, high wind velocities. The MCR mix consists of 1 part cement, 2 parts of graded sand, and 1 part of stone grit, smaller than 6 mm in size.


Compressed Earth Blocks

The Compressed Earth Block (CEB) Technology offers a cost effective, environmentally sound masonry system, suitable for a variety of applications in walls and roofs to make strong and durable buildings.


The primary inputs needed are human and sunlight energy and ordinary soil as the raw material.


White Papers

An important activity of ARTS is to continually generate information products and services to promote the cause of ‘Sustainable Development’ in general, and for rural development in particular. These will be available in the form of ‘Whir Papers’, which will be posted and revised appropriately.

From Our Partner
DESI Power
Commercialisation of Power Generation from Biomass

The development of rural India is an undisputed need of today. The task of development is very closely linked with the supply of power to these areas. Many of the activities leading to income generation as well as the general upliftment in the facilities available in rural areas need a reliable supply of electric power. It may not be incorrect to state that supply of electric power is almost a prerequisite for the development of a region.

Time has shown that dependence on centralised supply of electricity based on conventional sources of energy has not resulted in any reliable solution of the power problem in rural areas. Instead, the concept of decentralised generation and supply of electric power using locally available renewable energy resources is gaining ground. Till now this has resulted in many demonstration projects for different technologies. However, commercialisation of use of renewable energy is yet to take off.

In view of this, DESI Power installed a commercial plant at Orchha near Jhansi in Madhya Pradesh, which has been operating for more than a year now. This article summarises the experiences in installation and operation of this plant during this period.

Watch this space for new entries

 

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