From shipping container to housing unit

Passers-by were perplexed when a shipping container was offloaded on the lawn behind the Municipal Offices in Ryneveld Street, Stellenbosch last week. A week later the transformation amisazing – in place of a raw metal container, there is now a fully equipped housing unit complete with kitchen and bathroom (with toilet, basin and shower).

“This demonstration unit is to show the community that shipping containers can be up-scaled into liveable units that one can be proud of,” explains Alderman Conrad Sidego, Executive Mayor of Stellenbosch. “Stellenbosch has a backlog of 25 000 housing units. If an individual applies for a house now, he will most likely only get the unit in more than a decade. Shipping containers are a quick and effective way of supplying housing.” The unit is being equipped by Cobus Prinsloo of Sibanya Box Developers and Sam Chagwedera from Barwe Building and a team of workers. A unit consisting of one container of 2.2m x 6m and equipped with kitchen cupboards, a stove, bathroom (with basin, toilet and shower) costs between R80 000 and R95 000. A larger unit consisting of two containers costs R125 000.

These units have many advantages: The walls are crack resistant, they are water and sound proof and can be equipped within three to seven days. It is also fire resistant and the Nutec “skin” on the inside and outside “walls” help to keep the unit cool in summer and warm in winter. “The housing need in South Africa is huge,” says Sidego. “We need innovative solutions to create a more dignified living environment. These units also tie in with Stellenbosch’s status as the Innovation Capital of South Africa and our vision to be the greenest municipality and to create dignified living for our citizens. By turning these containers into housing units, we eliminate the need for expensive building materials and processes." The living space can easily be increased by breaking through to a second container which can, for example, be converted into two quite spacious bedrooms or other rooms. There are many examples globally of expensive, high-tech houses being created from shipping containers using high quality finishes and furnitures. Some of these are two or three storeys high. A solar panel (18 kw) is usually installed with the model on show in Stellenbosch. This supplies energy for a stove, TV, fridge and lights.

“Most people think that a shipping container is a huge tin can that is only good for transporting goods,” says Councillor Valerie Fernandez,Portfolio Manager: Human Settlements and Property at Stellenbosch Municipality. “Hopefully the unit behind the municipal buildings will be proof that this kind of housing is innovative and offers a dignified living option. The advantage is that many units can be equipped and be ready to move into within a short time. “The life expectancy of a container in its original shape is 180 years. But once it is upscaled the expectancy is much longer. It is a sustainable housing solution.”