During the last decades, bamboo has become a popular material. That is not so strange since bamboo has some great qualities. It is a renewable resource, grows incredibly fast, up to a meter per day, and can be used to make all sorts of products, from fabric to complete houses and even skyscrapers. In addition, bamboo has a strength that rivals steel. This exciting property has led telecom company BOSCO Uganda to collaborate with APC Asia through the Coordinator Sarbani Banerjee Belur to create a telecom tower made entirely from bamboo.
Untreated bamboo can bear the weight of concrete while possessing the rigidity and tensile strength to support its weight. It can withstand gusts of up to 210 km/h (130 mph), with an expected lifespan of approximately ten years with proper maintenance.
A bamboo tower takes 5 to 12 days to construct, depending on the size and consumes less energy than traditional steel towers. In addition, bamboo being inherently light, allows for easy transportation and installation of structures on rooftops without putting any additional stress on the building. The deployed structure underwent treatment as a measure to protect it from termite and mould attacks as well as adverse climate conditions.
The first bamboo tower in Uganda was erected at BOSCO Uganda Office, Gulu City. Gulu City has plenty of natural resources, including bamboo, so it is also a local material.
“Could this be a solution and a sustainable mode of expanding telecommunication”
