Kia Village Library

November 2016 | Kia, Solomon Islands

  • Photo of the exterior of the building, taken during a grand-opening celebration held by the villagers. The porches were biult by the villagers, using locally sourced hardwoods.
  • Photo of the exterior of the building, taken during a grand-opening celebration held by the villagers.
  • Exterior view of the biulding, near the end of construciton.
  • Interior of the library, near the end of construction.
  • Interior of the library, near the end of construction.
  • The primary structure, consisting of glulam timbers and structural insulated panels, was prefabricated at the WRD plant in Jefferson, Oregon. The components were the disasembled and shipped to the Solomon Islands.
  • On-site construction was completed with help from the local villagers.
  • Renderings of the library from the construction document set.
  • Floor plan of the library from the construction document set.
  • Floor plan of the library from the construction document set.

In 2015, I led the design team at Wood Research and Development to design and build a library for the village of Kia, in the Solomon Islands. The libraray would house a collection that had recently been donated to the grade shcool in the village.

The primary structure consists of glulam timbers; the walls and roof are made from structural insulated panels (SIPs). A key requirement was a climate control system to protect the books from the extreme humidity of the tropical climate. Since there are no utilities in the village, a photovoltaic system was provided to power the HVAC and lighting.

We prefabricated the structure in our Oregon faciltiy and then shipped the materials to Kia. I traveled to the village to supervise construction along with a team of volunteers and local workers.

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