Storm Flipper

Competition entry for a new drinking fountain prototype in the parks of London.

The concept is quite simple; an image of bad weather is turned upside down and creates a very strong icon for a drinking fountain.




The overturned umbrella acts as the water basin, the raindrops as its structural support as well as water pipes and the cloud as its base.
A lightning coming from the cloud lights up during the night.
Rainy weather is a very suitable symbol for both a drinking fountain and the city of London and will surely attract many thirsty park visitors
around the city to quench their thirst.

Construction
Vertical metal pipes with drops mounted on them are holding the structure. The dimension of the pipes is changing depending on function, making the outer ones constructive pipes and also the water pipe is a bit thicker due to factors as vandalism. The sink is made of plastic that is later painted in various combinations. The base is cast and polished concrete with drilled holes for assembling the pipes underneath the base.
Materials can be altered after consultation depending on cost and durability.





There are an endless assortment of patterns and colours for umbrellas and no matter how they look they are still unmistakable recognized as umbrellas. The drinking fountains can therefore be carried out in a great variety as well, without losing its familiarity as an object.
The different styles can be chosen according to the various parks location and image and the result will be a great number of different drinking fountains that comes from the same module.
The bad weather module can also be done in a divided edition and can thus be wall mounted. There is also the possibility to sponsor some of the modules, just like corporate umbrellas.
Many thanks to our Colombian friend Andres Morelli for the renders.

Umbrella

Due to our northern location we seldom get the chance to do something for the poorest people on this planet. So when we saw this competition we felt urged to do a proposal.
Insufficient water is one of the most severe problems in rural Africa. For many families it is extremely time consuming to collect and can easily start conflicts between villages.
We had an idea that we should create a dew/rainwater collector as a roof and the rest of the building would more or less handle itself.
To test the idea we went to the Sahara desert where an experiment with a dew collecting umbrella where performed. (http://thegoldbrain.blogspot.com/2009/02/sahara-field-trip.html)

We wanted to design a modern and free-standing structure that could be added to a rural building and at the same time supply the hospital with clean water.
The solution is simple. An upscaled upside down umbrella serves as a roof to a rural built hospital. The umbrella roof is gathering rainwater or dew depending on location to supply the hospital with clean water. The big umbrella also serves as a light roof giving shadow to the hospital. The umbrella will be a recognizable symbol for children healthcare seen from miles around.

Phases:

The structure is made out of light felt and steel. In the middle of the umbrella shaped tent there is a water container gathering the clean water from the roof.


At first the hospital is built as a small village with local materials under the umbrella, the water container becomes the midpoint of the hospital. The hospital gets energy supply from solar panels.


When the hospital grows the umbrella can easily grow by adding an outer layer of felt and moving the pillars outwards from the centre point. The different houses expands by mirroring themselves outwards. As the structure grows the water supply surface gets bigger at the same time.

As time goes by, modern material can be added to improve the village without interfering with the design. Our hope is that the structure becomes a roof for constant developing

As a final stage a facade with sun protection can be added, making the building into a modern hospital. It is our hope and belief that the regions in need for this hospital will develop into strong economies one day. This building is prepared to stand in better times as well.