[freebeard]

Is the Original CINVA Ram Still Available for Making Compressed Earth Blocks?

<p>The original CINVA ram was engineered by Raul Ramirez of the Inter-American Housing Center (Spanish acronym: CINVA) in Bogota, Columbia, in 1952. The name “CINVA” has come to stand for most lever action presses that make compressed earth blocks (CEBs) one at a time, whether of the original Ramirez design or something similar. One of the design features of the original CINVA ram was that it could be fabricated just about anywhere a welder and plate steel are available. Local fabrication, compact size, and manual operation have made it ideal for international development projects and owner-builders such as you.</p>
<p>So, where will you find one today? There are probably a few companies still making them, but the only one I know of in the United States is <a href=”http://www.ferncometal.com/earthblocks.htm” target=”_blank”>Fernco Metals</a> in New Mexico. <span class=”url”>You could also fabricate your own by purchasing plans from</span>
<span class=”url”>
<a href=”http://www.dirtcheapbuilder.com/cinvaramplans.html” target=”_blank”>
<font color=”#000000″>www.dirtcheapbuilder.com</font>
</a>. Internationally, the <a href=”Auroville Earth Institute target=”_blank”>Auram press</a> (made in India) is an excellent manual press.</span>

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