Instalación de cuarentena de emergencia

A Transdisciplinary Architectural Response to Crisis

Pangilinan, A., Cotia D.J., Arellano, A.C.

23 de mayo de 2025

WTA, WTA Labs

Abstract

One of the great imbalances of our societal response to COVID-19 was the overwhelming emphasis put on barriers and guidelines to reinforce individual safety and personal health with the critical issue of user isolation and challenged community spatial needs. This Emergency Quarantine Facility design focuses on needed relief spaces with speed and massive scalability to emerge through the quick spread of the virus. Adaptability is a prime consideration for efficient architecture: the modular structure can be easily and quickly constructed and scaled using readily available local hardware materials such as 2"x4" wooden studs wrapped with a combination of opaque and transparent plastic sheets to provide both privacy and visual transparency. Within the thin plastic skin are designated donning and doffing areas to limit cross-contamination between medical staff and patients. With a 156 square-meter iteration, the structure can accommodate up to 16 beds serviced with two toilets and a nurse station. 60 facilities were erected in less than a month across Greater Metro Manila, pulling off the strategic solution for efficient disaster response within different local contexts. The designs are published for public and community use to promote replicability and multiplicity with the hopes of catching up to the rising number of quarantine patients.

Keywords:

Disaster Resilience, Modular Design, Community Building, Emergency Response, Temporary Structures

Pages:

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A look into the EQF. WTA, 2021.

Introduction

The main idea behind the EQFs was to be able to come up with a simple, scalable, and fast design solution to address the urgent and outperform need for facilities. Each facility consists of three main areas, a nurse station, a 16-room ward, a toilet and bath area, along with separate donning and golfing areas. The main materials are wood frames and polyethylene sheets, materials that are both easy to use and readily available throughout the architecture. The transparencies of six walls in the EQFs provide a light and ethereal imagery to better soothe patients and allow them to have a sense of understanding about their isolated conditions.

SKIN

The facility will be wrapped with a combination of opaque and transparent plastic to provide both privacy and visual transparency.

STRUCTURE

The structure can be easily and quickly constructed using readily available materials such as 2"x4" wood.

STRATEGY

Designated donning and doffing areas are included to limit cross-contamination between medical staff and patients.

SCALE

The emergency center can accommodate up to 16 beds and can be scaled up or down depending on need.

IMPACT

The facilities being augmentations to existing healthcare facilities meant that they can be used the day after they are finished. This means that with either a build time of 5-6 days and with a manpower component of 18-20 workers, they are immensely usable by the local hospitals. They provided spaces which are accessible and comforting to sick patients who fear and distrust centralized facilities that bring together people from various disparate and distant communities.

Construction of the first ECF at the Manila Naval Hospital in Fort Bonifacio was started on March 28th and finished on April 15. Construction operations would continue to grow and reach up to 28 simultaneous sites at its peak with over 500 builders involved. From the beginning, we made the plans open source and available online. This allowed them to be adopted for use on sites all over the Philippines and abroad.

Over 62 days from March to May 2020, 75 iterations were built, at more than 3,500 additional beds.

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