Sustainably designed and programmed for human comfort

The building’s program is sensitively arranged with glass box rooms controlling smaller environments within a larger open plan, passively conserving energy and maintaining thermal comfort in the space. A permeable dust filtering façade for the building allows natural cross ventilation through the building during the day and an exposed thermal mass to naturally cool off at night. During the dominant rainy season peak temperatures are above 35°C while nights are below 22°C. Naturally ventilated office boxes made of glass and open reading rooms located near the periphery and under mezzanine clerestories are lit by the highest quality daylight. Humidity controlled archive boxes, also made of glass are strategically located at the center under the mezzanine for maximum UV and thermal protection.

High performance, low impact

There are two main construction materials used for the library: local wood & bamboo are used to create a permeable façade, while ductal or UHCP concrete is used for the roof / columnar structure. The UHCP results in a very low carbon footprint while providing tremendous material savings in iron and aggregates, up to 70%. Exposed material finishes further reduce maintenance costs. The lean slab is carefully designed to be thin enough to reduce material consumption and waste, while sufficiently thick enough (6cm) to provide a regulating thermal mass, providing large spans. Waterless toilets and greywater management strategies in combination with rain water harvesting and storage ensure no drop of water goes to waste, but is instead utilized for landscape irrigation and cleaning.

Building as an ecological engine for the campus and Malawi

The characteristically curved roof is covered with flexible solar PV sheets, a pioneering solution to Malawi’s crippling energy crisis. The roof produces 627 MWh/a of electricity, 340% more than its calculated consumption of 142 MWh/a. All excess energy is distributed to the rest of the campus. Thermal capillary mats behind the PV, harvest solar energy for free water-based night heating, while also boosting the efficiency of the PV panels. The ratio of the façade’s perforation was calculated to utilize the dominant East South East winds and maximize cross ventilation throughout all reading and office spaces. Roof-formed mezzanine clerestories allow diffused daylight from the South, ensuring high quality reading and office spaces with a spatial daylight autonomy between 70-99%.