Industrial Consultancy & Sponsored Research (IC&SR) , IIT Madras
Foldable and Portable Prefabricated Structures and Methods of Fabrication thereof
Categories for this Invention
Category- Civil Infrastructures & Structural Engineering
Industry Classification:
- NIC (2008)- 25112- Manufacture of metal frameworks or skeletons for construction and parts thereof ((towers, masts, trusses, bridges etc.); 25119- Manufacture of other structural metal products
- NAICS (2022)- 332311- Prefabricated Metal Building and Component Manufacturing
Applications- Rapid housing, slum rehabilitation, emergency shelter, portable shelter etc.
Market report: Indian prefabricated buildings market is USD 2.3 billion in 2024 and is anticipated to register a CAGR of over 13% in the period 2024-2029
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Problem Statement
- Most prefabricated shelter structures require special fasteners and hardware in order to produce a shelter with desired rigidity and ruggedness
- Often, additional training and a skilled workforce is required to assemble the structures on site.
- If special hardware is lost, the replacement of the parts necessary to assemble the materials may be difficult
- There is a need in the art for an improved pre-fabricated building structure that is easy to assemble, disassemble, expand and safe and rugged too..
Technology
- The outer frame is basically a skeleton made of beams and columns which are telescopic. This allows the frame to be folded in all three dimensions making it compact. When folded, the volume gets reduced by a great factor (12 to 48 or even more).
- When the beams move relative to one another, a guidance system comprising a linear bearing system that restricts the motion of beams in undesirable directions is embedded within the beams to make the movement between beam segments smooth.
- Apart from the main beams; intermediate beams are present to support flooring, roofing and intermediate wall systems.
- Different types of foundations such as pad foundation, bolting and Surefoot can be used.
- A scaled down version of the original model was built as a prototype with 2 key parts- the frame and the wall, floor and roof panels. The prototype made of aluminum is scaled down version of original model.
Key Features / Value Proposition
- The prefabricated structure is compact and easy to transport. Which simplifies logistics and reduces redeployment cost.
- The house is very cost effective compared to the conventional temporary structures used.
- The model is strong, sturdy and durable with at least 12-15 years of expected lifetime. Hence making re-usability a major factor in increasing lifetime value of the product..
- Better thermal insulation and higher standards of living at affordable prices. Also, these structures help in creating a clean, safe and hygienic environment.
- This structure is highly versatile and hence it gives the user the freedom to design the structure as per requirement.
- Foldability reduces the volume by a factor of 12 to 36 or even more, which makes possible to transport big structures in a folded condition.
- The model doesn’t require high technical skills and knowledge for setting up. As the structure is pre-engineered, every part is pre- fabricated. Whereas, conventional prefabricated buildings required skilled labor to make prefabricated structures usable.
Questions about this Technology?
Contact For Licensing
sm-marketing@imail.iitm.ac.in
ipoffice2@iitm.ac.in
Research Lab
Mr ShreeRam R
Mr Santhosh G V
Mr Gobinath P
Department of Civil Engineering
Intellectual Property
- IITM IDF Ref. 1483
- IN 480904- Patent Granted
Technology Readiness Level
TRL 6
Technology demonstrated in relevant environment