March 2007-Domes Showcased in Home & Garden Show

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Carol Lanham
BWG Agency
972-818-0895

Company that Spearheaded Superdome Repairs to Showcase Hurricane-Resistant Dome Home at New Orleans Home & Garden Show

NEW ORLEANS (March 19, 2007) – The company that restored the Superdome after the extensive damage caused by Hurricane Katrina is returning to New Orleans with a dome of its own — a hurricane-proof dome home that may offer one of the best solutions for the city’s rebuilding efforts.

Dome Logix, a division of Baton Rouge, Louisiana-based Brazos Industries, which spearheaded $32.5 million in post-hurricane repairs to the stadium’s roof, will be showcasing a model of the hurricane-proof dome house at the New Orleans Home & Garden Show scheduled for March 29th through April 1st at the Superdome.

The home, known as a Monolithic Dome, meets the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s (FEMA) criteria for near-absolute protection from hurricanes. It also is extremely energy-efficient, costing as much as 50 percent less to heat and cool than a traditional building of the same size.

As their name implies, Monolithic Domes are round, one-piece structures because they have no roof and are made of steel-reinforced concrete, they are actually better able to resist the high winds of a hurricane than the Superdome, which lost its roofing system in the hurricane-force winds.

There are hundreds of Monolithic Dome homes across the United States, and around the world, but only four such homes have been built in Louisiana. Heaton is optimistic that will change once word spreads of the domes’ advantages.

“Although the homes are considered unusual to those accustomed to traditional square houses, Monolithic Domes offer the safest and most cost-effective solution for families looking to rebuild in hurricane-prone areas,” he says. “We plan to help in the continuing rebuilding efforts along the Gulf Coast by constructing these affordable dome homes that are made to last for centuries.”

Dozens of Monolithic Dome buildings that were in the path of Hurricane Katrina in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and Florida?, doubled as disaster shelters, keeping occupants safe inside and sustaining no structural damage.

Unlike their predecessor, the geodesic dome, which uses a complex network of triangular pieces to replicate the shape of a sphere, Monolithic Domes are one-piece structures with a smooth surface that is shaped like an egg. The materials used in the construction of the buildings, combined with their shape, account for their strength.

The process for constructing the domes is as unique as the buildings themselves.

Foregoing hammer and nails, Monolithic Dome builders utilize giant fans, canvas tarps, and a liquid concrete similar to the kind used in swimming pool construction.

Construction begins with the placement of plumbing and special electrical conduits and the pouring of a circular foundation. This round foundation features special anchors around the perimeter that hold in place the Airform, an inflatable tarp made of tough, single-ply roofing material that creates the shape of the dome.

After inflation, construction moves to the interior. As fans keep the Airform inflated, the interior is sprayed with a polyurethane insulation material in several stages, finally totaling about three inches. A grid of steel rebar is then attached to the foam, making the inside of the dome look like a giant birdcage. Finally, the rebar grid is embedded in a 2- to 3-inch layer of the liquid concrete known as Shotcrete.

The result is a strong and permanent structure that meets FEMA criteria for near absolute protection not only from hurricanes, but from tornadoes as well.

The insulating foam combined with the thermal mass of the concrete means that domes cost significantly less to heat and cool than traditional buildings. Over the long run, domes actually pay for themselves in the savings derived from utility expenses.

Monolithic Domes also are used as churches, gymnasiums, schools, and storage facilities. For more information about the buildings, visit www.monolithic.com.