The exploration of various types of recyclable materials and building components has been a favourite topic among architects interested in sustainability Green Architecture. Among these recyclables, the shipping container has found itself to be a reliable favourite. In this built project, four former shipping containers are utilised to be a low-cost play centre. ,
Many architects before PHOOEY Architects have exploited the shipping container's modularity, transformability and durability to suit their design intentions. Shigeru Ban transformed numerous containers into an art gallery while LOT-EK called their modular functional space Mobile Dwelling Unit or MDU, signifying the multiple usability/reusability of the shipping container. For the Children's Activity Centre, PHOOEY Architects staggered four reused containers to form intimate and private spaces for various kids activities such as studying, painting, dancing and lounging.
The project was not initially briefed to be a sustainable building with quantitative outcomes or benchmark standards; the local council and community had simply wanted a low-cost, low maintenance and durable centre at Skinners Playground for the children. Nonetheless, the architects decided that they could turn it into a more sustainable project.
Besides leveraging on the containers' reusable nature, the architects focused on the operational energy required for the centre. The building is only open for two hours a day, thus, limiting the operational energy required. Even so, the designers decided to reduce the operational energy further by self-shading the containers with a timber deck, staircase, overhangs and awnings. Other passive features include ceiling vents to remove excess heat, and bulk insulation that fills both containers upstairs and downstairs to reduce the need for mechanical heating during cold days. The upstairs windows are oriented to the winter sun, allowing passive heating. In the summer, cool summer breeze from the nearby Port Phillip Bay flows through the strategically oriented openings. Energy-efficient reverse cycle air-conditioning and panel heating provide immediate climate control when needed. As a result, the embodied energy is comparable to the limited operational energy required for the total life-cycle energy of the building, which aids in prolonging-if not maintaining-the lifespan of this project.
Approximately 90 percent of the materials in the building are recycled: the windows, joineries, carpet tiles, timber and steel were salvaged from site demolition and local council facilities including the town hall. Even the smallest pieces of materials are not wasted. Timber off-cuts from the deck are reused for soffit linings and edging. The entire body of the Corten steel containers is used; the pieces cut out to make openings were re-fashioned into functional balustrades, sunshading and decoration to cover the adjoining dilapidated shed. The skins of the containers bearing their shipping companies' names were 'cannibalised' or shredded and rearranged into the final building design. Rainwater runoff from the corrugated roofs are channelled into a pond and reed bed.
The architects described this project as a visual catalogue of waste materials, educating not only the children but also the community at large that low cost does not just mean economically sustainable, it could also mean environmentally sustainable.
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