Why BaMbu

Its a medium seldom used in modern applications, and viewed as only a traditional material used in small structures. PT Bambu, the company that designed and built the Greenschool, is motivated in changing peoples perspective of the infinite potential of this material. Here are some reasons why :
~ A single bamboo clump can produce up to 15 kilometers of usable pole in its lifetime.
~ Certain timber bamboos have better tensile strengths that iron or steel on strength per weight ratio.
~ Over one billion people in the world live in bamboo houses, and the world’s recognized 1,100 to 1,500 species range in geographical distribution from the tropics to temperate climates,from 46 N to 47 S, and altitudes up to 4,000 meters.
~ The world trade in bamboo and rattan is currently estimated at US$ 14 billion per year, and bamboo’s commercial consumption is expected to reach US$ 20 billion per year by the 2015.
~ Bamboo is the most diverse and primitive group of plants in the grass family, and has one of the highest rate of photosynthesis of any plant species in the world.
~ Bamboo is extremely resilient; in fact a species of bamboo was the first plant to return to life after the atomic bombings of Japan in 1945.
~ Bamboo can grow at an incredibly rapid rate, up 1.2 meters in 24 hours!
~ Certain bamboo root clumps can live for hundreds of years, providing a dependable and steady supply of materials; in fac, a mature 100′ by 100′ patch of clumping timber bamboo can produce enough material to produce a house every year! Source : www.sustainableadvertising.org

Did you know :
Bamboo is naturally hypo-allergenic and anti-bacterial, preventing odor, allergies and skin irritations.
~ Bamboo has for centuries been used in Ayurveda and Chinese acupunture.
~ Bamboo has double the absorbency of cotton.
~ Bamboo is an essential structural material in earthquake architecture.
~ Bamboo is the most sustainable textile material available on the market.
~ Bamboo is considered as a mystical plant throughout Asia. It is a symbol of stregth,flexibility, tenacity, endurance and compromise.
~ Due to its high nitrogen consumption, bamboo help mitigate water pollution, making it a solution for excess nutrient uptake of wastewater from manufacturing, livestock farming and sewage treatment.

Uses of Bamboo :
~ Wind protection
~ Bamboo leaves added compost create a natural fertilizer
~ Bamboo added to rice compost creates natural fungi protection
~ Soil erosion control
~ Road embankment stabilization
~ Irrigation pipes
~ A source of food and fodder
~ Storage containers

Musical instruments like flutes and xylophones
The grass – Bamboo – is believed to be the fastest-growing plant on the palanet. It is considered to be one of our most sustainable resources, and its stands release 35% more oxygen than equivaent stands of trees. Some bamboo even sequester up yo 12 tons of carbon dioxide from the air per hectare. Bamboo can also lower light intensity and protects against the sun’s harmful radiation.

Bamboo can be harvested in as little as three years up to five years. It is also incredibly strong having been tested and proven stronger in comparison to steel on tensile strength per weight ratio. Certain varieties can grow to over 60 feet in several cases without the aid of toxic pesticides and fertilizers.

When treated, bamboo forms a very hard wood which is both lightweight and exceptionally durable. In tropical climates it is used in elements of house contruction, contruction scaffolding, as a substitute for steel reinforcing rods in concrete construction, and so on.

PT Bambu also attempts to popularize bamboo flooring called bamboo PURE. It is comprised of simply bamboo planed and pinned together with bamboo pins, using no glue, or chemical finishes as most florring laminates are.

Futhermore, bamboo is an ecological construction material that is earthquake and cyclone resistant, and has also seen international certification for the resistance qualities, with three ISO standarts currently available for bamboo as contruction material. Alone, a peerless erosion control agent, it’s net like root system create an effective mechanism for watershed protection, stitching the soil together along fragile riverbanks, deforested areas, and in places prone to earthquakes and mudslides.

In short, bamboo is resilient, super strong, and sustainable and an exquisite component of landscape aesthetics.