Armstrong company puts the dome in domicile

He’s not just thinking outside the box, he made the box round.

Helmut Prion, along with a four person team, has started Curved by Design, a company that designs dome buildings. The former structural engineering professor at the University of British Columbia has both the technical expertise and the creativity for the venture.

“It’s a bit of a passion of mine,” he stated, which is no understatement as is evident when he speaks about it.

Joining him are design and sales experts Rick Melnychuk, Janine Carscadden, Eva Ekeroth and Peter Black.

Still in the first stages, the company is finishing up different sized prototypes. The smaller the structure, the more difficult the finishing is. Prion compared it to trying to wrap a piece of paper around a ball; it wrinkles, whereas smaller pieces on a larger surface work far better.

The unique dome shape offers a number of benefits, one of those being energy efficiency. These structures have a 30 per cent reduction on heating and cooling costs because the open design helps with air flow and the lack of corners cuts down on wasted space.

Another benefit, which Prion is really focused on, is the natural structural strength.

“It’s like an egg,” he explained. “You can push and push on it and it won’t break even though it’s just a thin layer of calcium.”

That inspired the entrepreneur to look at the domes as disaster relief housing. While still at UBC, Prion put the dome through the paces with a load test and earthquake test. He put a 24 foot diameter dome on the shake table, which simulates earthquakes as close to reality as possible, and after adding five and a half tons of sand bags, gave it the shake down. A video of the experiment on their website shows the extreme movement as they put the dome under the conditions of the Nahani, AK quake of 1985, the 1992 Joshua Tree, CA and 1994 Sherman Oaks, CA tremors and the Kobe, Japan earthquake of 1995. The structure always returns back to its original position and remains intact.

After that test, the group threw another 10 tons of sand bags and eight and a half tons of steel plates on the dome for a total of 24 tons. It still didn’t collapse.

With this information in mind, Prion wants to see these become an affordable alternative to the tents and shacks currently used in disaster zones. He envisions flat packing the materials to ship to these countries where citizens can easily erect them. Pre-made eight by two foot panels can be lifted into place easily with little manpower. And, as you build from the ground up, those forms become a kind of scaffolding negating the need for large, expensive equipment to reach the top.

Further relief plans include his idea for a series of domes connected by curved hallways of sorts. This would create a doughnut shape with a centre courtyard, which encourages community living as well as security. It’s like the frontier days of circling the wagons.

Prion’s second passion relating to the company is keeping it as environmentally friendly as possible.

“We believe in green technology,” he stated. “One of our mission statements is to be successful yes, but we’re very environmentally conscious so we try to build as green as possible.”

That includes treating the wood with borates rather than chemicals to deter pests such as termites and vermin. The company is also looking at recycled insulation and are able to use wood from trees infected with pine beetles.

To make domes, they only use very short pieces of wood in order to get the curvature. As long pieces of lumber aren’t needed, they can take useable bits from those trees as well as the trim ends from mills.

Yoga enthusiasts as well as teachers who work with attention deficit children have told Prion they can see emotional benefits to the shape as well. ADD kids need areas with no distractions. As domes have no corners for the eye to focus on, there is the illusion that they go on forever explained Prion. They foster a sense of enveloping community and equal standings as there is no front of a circle.

While more of an abstract quality, it does contribute to Prion’s excitement about the project.

With an upcoming Business after Business at the Armstrong Chamber of Commerce, he wants to introduce the company to the area and spread that passion.

“We’re still trying to build up an industry here,” Prion explained. “We want to stay local as much as possible, get the materials as locally as possible. There are so many lumber mills around here.”

With his enthusiasm backing it and a number of uses and floor plans available, chances are good the concept will catch on. While very ideal for cottages, offices and yoga studios, full houses are also possible. Plans are available for a one-storey open plan as well as two-storey options. And of course, Prion has the architectural training to create custom plans.

“I think we have something to offer that is unique, that has value but is affordable,” he added. “That is why we’re passionate, we believe in it.”