
Building in a hot humid climate with a very small budget can prove to be challenging as the aim is to keep the building cool at most times without resorting to expensive mechanical installations. Here, efforts are concentrated in the sectional design and on passive cooling methods to ensure that air can move around and escape up the highest point of the building. These efforts are perhaps most evident in the dormitory blocks. The corridors of the double-banked room arrangement tend to be dark and will be prone to overheating if left unventilated. To counter this problem, the roof above the corridor is raised and clerestorey glass louvers introduced along its whole length, allowing natural light to percolate through and hot air to escape. Further to this, void openings punched in the first floor corridor slab at intervals help air to move from ground floor up and above to the top of roof by stack ventilation.