Dubbed Moca, which is an abbreviation for Mobile Catalyst, this little mobile home was constructed by the students and researchers at the Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia. The home was built in Barcelona utilizing wood collected from the Collserola Natural Park. This two-person dwelling is perched on a trailer, and it can be easily and efficiently transported via car. The mobile home is built using cross-laminated timber, and it is powered by solar energy.
Designer: IAAC (Institute for Advanced Architecture of Catalonia)
“The challenge was to manufacture a mobile home with wood, using the materials and tools that we have at Valldaura Labs so that it met the requirements of a mobile construction at a regulatory and functional level,” said MAEBB co-director Vicente Guallart.
The mobile dwelling was designed by students and researchers of the Masters in Advanced Ecological Buildings and Biocities (MAEBB) course at IAAC. This thoughtful design promotes and encourages the study of ecological design through the use of live projects. It was constructed at the IAAC’s Valladura Labs, which is located in the Collserola Natural Park.
Moca is designed to be a flexible and free-flowing living space. It is an open space that can be adapted to a section for living, dining, sleeping, or events as well! The dwelling features timber-framed screens that are shrouded with white fabrics, allowing the room to be open. Behind these screens, there are glass doors that offer better control of privacy, and the home’s connection to the outdoors.
“The folding panels allow multiple open-closed configurations on one or both sides, depending on the landscape in which it is inserted, be it a forest, a beach, or an urban environment,” said Guallard. “The fabric allows for control of solar radiation and has very little weight, which was a fundamental issue due to the limit allowed for driving on the road,” he continued.
The main central space is surrounded by two rooms on either side. These rooms have been named “toolboxes”. These rooms function as storage areas, and they hold utilities. They help in changing the function and utility of the main room, as and when needed. The home was built using CLT panels which were created by the students themselves. These thin panels keep the structure’s weight below the maximum weight allowed for mobile homes.
