Reduce, reuse and recycle are the dominant keywords in the international discussion on sustainability with regard to construction. The triad which combines the reduction of waste volumes by avoiding waste, reusing materials as directly as possible and material conversion through recycling – according to the experts, represents the ideal route to take. The Bauhaus Reuse Pavilion is a pilot project of how structural elements can be reused.
The mobile, temporary building is located on the site of the former Tempelhof Airport in Berlin. The pavilion consists of reused floor to ceiling window sections from the Bauhaus in Dessau, together with two recycled shipping containers, and will be modularly extended in a second construction phase. A hot dip galvanized steel structure connects the Bauhaus window and the containers to form a prototype building. It is intended to serve as a temporary meeting place for the pioneering “Nature Learning Centre” project and the “M.I.N.T. Green Classroom”. The pioneering projects form part of a pilot urban development scheme for the site. A transparent classroom is being developed for children and young people, where they can experiment with and learn from nature, and the pioneering projects are transforming into an everyday resource for schools, kindergartens and childrens’ daycare centres. In addition to being used as a teaching centre and a natural laboratory, the pavilion itself also offers an object lesson in relation to the contentious issues of recycling in construction, building culture and simple sustainable building. The pavilion is a reusable kit, and will be extended by additional sections. To conserve energy, the pavilion is being equipped with photo-voltaic equipment and solar heating, and will become part of the “smart grid” which is being developed on the site of the former airport. All its elements, even the foundations, can be completely dismantled and are intended to be fully recyclable. The robust and durable hot dip galvanizing process is once again displaying its outstanding sustainability characteristics in this project. The zukunftsgeraeusche GbR was responsible for the design and implementation of the Bauhaus Reuse project, in co-operation with the Technical University of Berlin.
Image: http://www.zukunftsgeraeusche.de