The Equip Foundation 

The Equip Foundation is an international educational resource agency committed to equipping leaders and transforming communities in both developed and developing nations.

Our Hands on Houses Project is designed to serve needy communities and encourage leaders to establish businesses that provide housing and employment.       We are currently building houses for widows and needy people in Southeast India.(Roughly 60 km South of Chennai.) We have helped to set up a small factory and are training villagers to manufacture housing components and to build houses using our particular method of construction.

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Hands on Houses

Our new method of construction is based on pre-cast wall panels and pre-fabricated roofing panels.     With this method, we are able to build 15 ft x 15 ft, 2 roomed, houses for less than US$ 3,500.  

The system is ideally suited to small business units in which House Construction teams create foundations and assemble houses. Panel manufacturing units create wall panels and roofing components for the construction teams.  



 
 

Our Houses Are:

Strong, durable and quake-resistant
Cool in summer, cozy in winter
Waterproof, damp-proof and hygienic
Economical and Quick to construct
Consistent in quality 

Pre-Cast Panels
Compared to concrete blocks, they are:
More resistant to moisture - no horizontal joints
Stronger - internally reinforced
Attached top and bottom
Quicker to install
Can incorporate windows and openings
Can be pre-finished

Insulated Roofing

The Roofing used in our houses is well insulated and waterproof.
This allows the houses to be cool in Summer and cozy in Winter.
Ceilings consist of light-weight precast, polyethylene reinforced cement panels.
The panels are covered with a layer of polyethylene sheeting, a layer of expanded polystyrene and a thin continuous layer of mesh-reinforced waterproof concrete.

Setting Panels

Pre-Cast Panels. Full-length precast panels represent the next generation in masonry units.