• • 02 July 2016
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  •  Billy Mwangi
• Technology , Materials , Videos , Articles Books & Magazines ,

Foster + Partners has unveiled the first full-scale prototype of its Droneport concept at the Arsenale, which is designed to transport medical supplies to remote regions in Africa using unmanned flying vehicles. 

The droneport prototype is the first project to be presented by The Norman Foster Foundation. 

The proposal is to create a network of droneports to deliver medical supplies and other necessities to areas of Africa that are difficult to access due to a lack of roads or other infrastructure and the ambition is that every small town in Africa and in other emerging economies will have its own droneport by 2030.

The pilot project – which will be launched this year – is based in Rwanda, a country whose physical and social geography poses multiple challenges. The initial plan for three buildings, to be completed by 2020, will enable the network to send supplies to 44 per cent of Rwanda. Subsequent phases of the project could see in excess of 40 droneports across Rwanda, and the country’s central location could allow easier expansion to neighbouring countries such as Congo, saving many thousands more lives.

The creation of a Biennale pavilion was made possible by The Norman Foster Foundation which brought together professors and students from five universities across Europe, the UK and America along with a foundation for the building industry and its related research laboratory. Its theme fits perfectly with Alejandro Aravena’s motto “Reporting from the Front”. Its construction in Venice was filmed to serve as a model for replication by local communities in emerging economies such as Africa, South America and parts of Asia. Although initially a response to the droneport, the construction system is applicable to a wider range of needs – markets, schools and medical facilities for example.

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