Container Park
An innovative core-and-shell project that offers flexible rentable areas.
TAGS
R&D Campus Design
Workspace
Lab Spaces
CLIENT
Ege University Technopark
STATUS
Completed, 2015
Container Park is Turkey’s first large scale second hand container R&D space. An innovative core-and-shell project that offers flexible rentable areas, coupled with social indoor-outdoor spaces and sustainable design strategies.
RESPONSIBILITIES
Concept Design
Masterplan Design
Phasing Strategy
Environmental Graphics
Detailed Design
Construction Control
Bidding Consultancy
RECOGNITION
Aga Khan Awards for Architecture 2018, Nominated
Architizer A+ Awards 2016 Prefab Category, Winner
WA Awards 2019, Winner
Contemporary Turkish Architecture Selection
Turkey Arkitera Architecture Annual
DESIGN CHALLENGE
Masterplan of the technopark informed the brief for a compact R&D facility as a landmark project within the technopark and established the rule of sequencing build-out for financial viability.
The building was to house office and laboratory units in a flexible core and shell format.
The timeline from concept design to end of construction was nine months, which was quite aggressive for any new building of such typology.
ANALYSIS
The project’s need was the creation of a masterplan and the initial R&D space that houses office and laboratory units to be rented out.
Building types with a simple construction process and the opportunities in regard to İzmir’s location were researched.
At that point, the proximity of the site to the port was turned into an opportunity, as the second- hand containers were placed on an existing infrastructure belonging to an old faculty building that was torn down in the masterplan.
SYNTHESIS
Engaging site with the existing context
Neighboring buildings and sight lines help the foundation boundaries.
Creating porosity for circulation
Inner courtyard, corridors, and ample seating spots enable spaces for prospect and refuge, as well as spontaneous encounters and play. Cross-circulation corridors are added for increased serendipity.
Building as a prototype
The project becomes a manifestation of a building as a prototype, one that entails a multidisciplinary research community in the city and beyond.
Designing a unique ecological building that inspires interdisciplinary research
CONCEPT
The project’s foundational motivation is to create moments of serendipity and synergy by strategically programming the space to accommodate a wide range of uses: isolated work, group collaboration, rapid fabrication, exhibition, and education.
Strategic programming enabled situating “catalysts” to increase interaction and collaboration potential within the technopark community.
Site-specific
By repurposing locally acquired second-hand shipping containers located 12 km away in Izmir port, an underused site with underused construction materials is upcycled.
Ecological
Aside from an exceptional amount of material recycling and reuse, the project exhibits a wide range of ecological strategies.
Future-proofed
Designing alternative layouts for different type of users & research projects enable the Park to be ready for multiple use scenarios.
ON-SITE
