ABSOLEM

The concept is both straight-forward and strange: Make a building that makes water.

Hot, humid air is cooled by “concrete condensers” - wave action pumps cool sea water through hybrid structures. The “concrete condenser’s” lower relative humidity of the adjacent air which triggers the dew point, humidity condenses and is captured. The metro stations along Mumbai’s Metro Line 01 act like a reverse radiator, creating a more comfortable micro climate while facilitating the mobility of a mass population. A new fresh water source is perfectly positioned to engage the millions of commuters and residents, leveraging routine habits to fulfill necessity.

“India is a riparian civilization. Since ancient times Indians have revered their rivers as lifelines, depicted as incarnations of benevolent goddesses.
Even today, millions of pilgrims visit festivals like the Kumbh Mela at the confluence of the Ganges and Yamuna. Since most of the rain falls within four months during the monsoon season, people have developed storage systems – village ponds, underground tanks, bamboo pipelines and the like, some of which can still be seen functioning today. Such water management technologies do not require large investment and can be used by local communities according to their needs.”
- Rainer Hoerig

The Metro stations act as nodal point for the ROWS (Reach Out Water Services) to carry out pragmatic functions of water movement and distribution, as well as publicly engage via community water harvesting, distribution, education and safety courses.

The “concrete condensers” are twisted along the new spine of the metro line to create a continuous cross-grain water distribution network; helping mitigate Mumbai’s water woes.