Skyshelter.Zip: Polish architects win global award for folding skyscraper

A Polish-designed high-rise that can fold away and be transported by helicopter has won a global competition for skyscraper design.

Skyshelter.zip, a collapsible tower designed to provide instant shelter in disaster zones, was named the winner of this year’s eVolo Skyscraper Competition.

Created by Damian Granosik, Jakub Kulisa and Piotr Pańczyk, the building can be flattened and packed away into a box as wide as the building’s base.

Once the skyscraper is anchored into the ground, a helium balloon inside the top of the tower is inflated, pulling the building upwards using steel wires. Each storey is made with fabric walls and lightweight 3D-printed slabs, with the wires providing stability.

The team hope the design will help rescue workers set up first aid bays, temporary housing and dry storage space in areas difficult to access by road.

“Skyshelter.zip’s footprint is on average over 30 times smaller than area required to host typically used tents or containers”, the team said. “This is especially important in densely populated areas but elsewhere means that it is going to be possible to set up those temporary shelters closer to victims original homes.”

To see other entries for this year’s eVolo Skyscraper Competition, visit the group’s website here.