The idea of secondary use of items has made transport containers a popular building material used by modern architects!
Shipping containers have long been architects’ weakness. Since the beginning of the 2000s, intriguing projects have begun to appear in different countries, in which containers are not in the role of something unusual, but an economical tool. It has long been known that their practical benefit and personal benefit contribute to environmental protection. The fashion for upcycling (turning old, obsolete materials into new ones) in architecture has become a process that has created a trend called cargotecture.
In this material, we have collected the brightest possible examples:
House around a tree in Costa Rica
Assemble eight shipping containers into one and you already have a home of 340 sq.m of total area, several terraces and a cozy patio! In this home, everything is subordinated to the idea of environmental protection and careful attitude to nature. Instead of air conditioners, ventilation and removable bamboo panels are integrated, instead of an electrical network, solar energy is used. Even rainwater is collected in special tanks, filtered and used in satin areas. The structure of the house is built around an old cedar, as if protecting it from human encroachment.
Giant House in Australia
This home of cargo containers in Brisbane has a well-deserved name – the champion of Australia. The house includes 31 containers – three floors, almost 700 sq.m and three months for construction. There is also a huge yard, a swimming pool and a large graffiti-style drawing on the façade. In the design of the home, clean lines prevail, there is a lot of space in it, and glass and wood are present as materials.
Container House in Denmark
A family from a city near Copenhagen built this house in order to save money. In their home, insulation has been made from cargo containers due to the cold climate in the country. In order for as much natural light as possible to penetrate, two lines of windows are provided.
Industrial-style house in Japan
The project was carried out for a man whose hobby is collecting motorcycles. The man did not have space for all the machines and proposed for this purpose architects to design a space from cargo containers. The first floor consists of three containers, which house a bedroom, kitchen, bathroom and garage. The second floor includes four cargo containers, in which there is a game room, a cinema, audio systems, etc.
White House in Spain
This home is assembled from four large containers placed on a stable foundation. Inside, the walls of the containers are insulated and painted with white paint – a typical option for Spain, designed to protect against the summer heat. The most pleasant thing is that each such container house can be disassembled and moved to another place, easily and quickly.
Summer house in the USA
This shipping container cottage is designed for a Colorado family vacation. On the façade, we distinguish between one large and six smaller containers. The metal is sheathed with wood, and the doorways have been converted into large windows. This home has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen with a living room and a huge deck-type terrace.
New business
There are many companies whose subject of activity is the assembly of container houses. Similarly, a German firm has specialized in the design of houses from long containers. According to the specialists in the company, the larger the area, the cheaper the construction. A project for a house made of cargo containers on an area of 300 sq.m, according to them, gives about 30% savings compared to a house built using traditional building materials.
For its part, an American company not only sells cargo containers, but also designs modular houses, offices, kiosks and hotels from them. For example, one of their projects is a residential building consisting of six apartments per floor, including a bedroom, bathroom and wardrobe. Each floor has a shared kitchen and guest room, and the stairs between the floors are made of recycled polycarbonate.
And this is what a modular office made of cargo containers looks like.
House of containers – a direction that is very actively developing in Europe. Currently, not only residential buildings are being built, but also administrative buildings, student dormitories, kindergartens and refugee camps.
An intriguing trend, isn’t it? [:en]
THE IDEA OF RE-USING MATERIALS HAS MADE THE TRANSPORTATIONAL MATERAL “TARA’’ A POPULAR CHOICE USED BY MODERN ARCHITECTS!
Containers for cargo transportation have long been a soft spot for architects. Since the beginning of the 2000s, intriguing projects have started to appear in different countries, in which containers are not in the role of something unusual, but are seen as an economic tool. It has been know for long that their practical benefit and personal benefit contribute to the protection of the environment. The fashion for upcycling (turning old materials into new ones) in architecture has become a process that has created a field, called cargotecture.
In this article, we have gathered the brightest examples:
House around a tree in Costa Rica
Assemble together eight transport containers and you already have a home of 340 square meters in total, including several terraces and a cozy patio! Everything in this home is subjected to the idea of environmental protection and taking care of nature. Instead of air conditioning, there is integrated ventilation and movable bamboo panels; instead of electricity grids – solar energy is used. Even rainwater is collected in special tanks, filtered and used in the smoothed-out areas. The construction of the house is built around an old cedar as if protecting it from human assault.
Giant House in Australia
This Brisbane cargo container home has a well-deserved name – The Australian Champion. The house includes 31 containers – three floors, nearly 700 square meters and construction spanning three months. There is also a huge courtyard, swimming pool and a large drawing in graffiti style on the facade. The house’s design is dominated by clean lines with plenty of space in it; the presented materials are glass and wood.
Home, made of containers in Denmark
A family from a town near Copenhagen built up this home in order to save money. Because of the cold climate in the country, their home has a thermal isolation. In order to have as much natural light as possible penetrating into the interior, two rows of windows are provided.
Industrial-style house in Japan
This is a project for a man whose hobby is collecting motorcycles. He did not have enough space for all the vehicles and he suggested the architects to design a space, made of cargo containers. The first floor consists of three containers, which include a bedroom, a kitchen, a bathroom and a garage. The second floor includes four freight containers, featuring a gaming room, a cinema, audio systems, and so on.
White House in Spain
This home has been assembled from four large containers placed on a stable base. Inside, the walls of the containers are insulated and painted with white paint – a typical design decision in Spain that is meant to protect the house from the summer heat. The most pleasant thing is that any one of these container houses can be disassembled and transported elsewhere easily and quickly.
Summerhouse in the USA
This cottage made of cargo containers is designed as a family holiday house in Colorado. On the facade we can see one large and six smaller containers. The metal is engraved with wood, and the door openings have been turned into large windows. This house has two bedrooms, two bathrooms, a kitchen with a living room and a huge deck terrace.
New business
There are many companies whose object of work is to assemble container houses. Similarly, a German firm specializes in designing elongated container houses. According to experts in the company, the larger the area is, the cheaper the construction will be. A project for a 300-square-meter cargo container house, according to them, yields about 30% more savings compared to a house built using traditional building materials.
For its part, one American company not only sells cargo containers, but also designs modular houses, offices, kiosks, and hotels. For example, one of their projects is a residential building consisting of six apartments per floor, including a bedroom, a bathroom and a wardrobe. Each floor has a shared kitchen and a guest room, and the stairs between the floors are made of processed polycarbonate.
And here’s how a modular office made of freight containers looks like.
Container Houses- a very active sector in Europe. Currently, not only residential buildings but also administrative buildings, student dormitories, kindergartens and refugee camps are being built using this method.
An intriguing trend, right?[:]
