Contract - October 2011 - (Page 61)

About MASS Design Group MASS Design Group (MASS) is a 501(c)(3) pending, not-for-profit firm, which currently operates under the fiscal sponsorship of Partners In Health (PIH). MASS originally was an acronym for Model of Architecture Serving Society, but MASS is also in reference to the critical mass needed to make positive change in the built environment. Cofounded by Executive Director Michael Murphy and Chief Operations Officer Alan Ricks, MASS has 15 full-time employees and three other staff members, with a presence in Rwanda, Haiti, Boston, and Los Angeles. And it is growing, with at least six projects currently in development primarily in Rwanda and Haiti. According to the organization, “MASS works to deliver the highest possible impact at the lowest possible cost to the groups we serve. MASS creates well-built environments using appropriate design, local investment, and innovation to break the cycle of poverty. We collaborate with governments, NGOs, private sector firms, and healthcare experts to advocate for the most underserved and provide scalable models of community-based development and training. MASS Design Group has shown that innovation, driven by interdisciplinary research and immersion in the field, can deliver well-built environments that are efficient, effective, and empowering.” Murphy and Ricks were classmates at Harvard Graduate School of Design when they founded MASS in 2008. After seeing a presentation by Dr. Paul Farmer of Partners in Health about that organization’s work in Rwanda, Murphy talked with Farmer about partnering to add a level of architectural design sophistication to PIH projects. —John Czarnecki The exterior is composed of hand-built stone walls and plaster walls. Signage was designed and donated by Massimo Vignelli. Significantly, the process to build the $4.4 million, 65,000-squarefoot hospital involved the training of 3,898 laborers, including about 3,500 local residents who worked in shifts around the clock. Those trained as masons built the volcanic stone wall by hand and are now highly sought-after in the area after gaining incredible skills. Other walls of the buildings were constructed with CMU blocks, a reinforced frame, and a plaster coating. All rainwater is collected and reused. Ricks points to this project’s wider lessons for the role of architects. “For me, this project demonstrates the instrumental role that architects provide as translators and planners,” Ricks says. “Architects are uniquely capable of studying and interpreting what the problem is, as well as how the well-built environment plays a role in addressing it.” MASS now has 10 architects in Rwanda and is building housing for the medical staff. “The hardest challenge was in executing this, realizing that drawings alone wouldn’t be enough to provide complete architectural service in this community,” Murphy says. “That is why we moved to site and established a team there to complete the project.” Butaro Hospital. Architect MASS Design Group. Client Rwandan Ministry of Health, Clinton Health Access Initiative, Partners In Health. Where Butaro, Burera District, Rwanda. What 65,000 total square feet on two floors. Cost/sf $70. For a full project source list, visit www.contractdesign.com. www.contractdesign.com contract october 2011 61 http://www.contractdesign.com http://www.contractdesign.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Contract - October 2011

Contract - October 2011
Contents
Editorial
Industry news
Product briefs: healthcare
Product focus: caregivers need care, too
Product focus: above + below
Product focus: glass for health
Advancements made in evidence-based healthcare design
The power of design
Less clinical, more hospitable
Beautifully lean
Raising the bar
New life
Urban sanctuary
The 2011 healthcare environment awards
Designers select: healthcare products
Ad index
Perspectives

Contract - October 2011