Comments on: New industrial architecture

Question: New industrial architecture

lou — Sat, 28 Mar 2009 23:28:49 -0800

Looking for examples of creative, modern industrial architecture.

When I think industrial buildings, I (and probably most people) imagine gigantic bland boxes, tens or hundreds of thousands square feet large surrounded by parking lots. But it doesn't always have to be that way, right? Zaha Hadid's BMW Central Building in Leipzig comes to mind, but even then, it's just a small piece in a collection of otherwise typical box warehouses.

What else is out there? I'd really like to see:
- Green - I'm thinking along the lines of LEED certification, or some kind of production in green materials.
- Industrial - light or heavy. Blue collar work environments. Nothing that's primarily office space.
- Mixed-use? If you can mix office, retail and residences, is it possible to mix industrial? Perhaps smaller industrial spaces? Does this even exist?
- On a similar vein, high-density is a bonus.
- The exterior environment is really important- It's not just the architecture that should be compelling but also the landscaping.

Alright, now please educate me!

By: Mizu

Mizu — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 01:39:22 -0800

Briefly, as I haven't much time, I suggest scrolling through the inhabitat.com architecture category. Far too many things there for me to just list.

By: WPW

WPW — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 06:50:57 -0800

Warehouses can be beautiful.

(Disclaimer: I work for that magazine.)

By: WPW

WPW — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 06:53:49 -0800

Recycling plants can also be beautiful.

By: carbide

carbide — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 07:03:25 -0800

Check out the 'Office' category in Baumschlager & Eberle's portfolio. There are a few projects (more workshops than heavy industry) that might interest you - Altenreid Woodworking Centre for sure, and maybe LTW Wolfurt (combining offices, warehouses, labs, and workshop), Sirch Woodworking Boehnen and Graf Electronics. (BTV Wolfurt misses your criteria entirely, but mixed use of a bank and residential kind of delights me.)

By: yclipse

yclipse — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 07:27:46 -0800

Look for the tag "amazingstructures" on Delicious.

By: arcticseal

arcticseal — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 07:43:17 -0800

You could do worse than look at the McLaren F1 headquarters.

By: iviken

iviken — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 07:49:26 -0800

The Volkswagen factory in Dresden. Also interesting: Toyota Roof Gardens.

By: arachnid

arachnid — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 08:22:48 -0800

GM's Lansing Delta Township plant is LEED certified.

By: themel

themel — Sun, 29 Mar 2009 08:30:53 -0800

Coop Himmelb(l)au built a bunch of particle board factories in the last two decades. Online info seems to be scarce. "Funder Werk n" for n=1..3 should be the key words.