Vectorworks Stipendium (CH) - 3. Rang A

WERKHOF
URBAN SITUATION
The site is located in Wiedikon directly at the northern end of the unfinished Sihlhochstrasse. Two highway bridges and a railway line crossing the site dominate the place and give it a very raw appearance. In the west, the Manessestrasse and the Blockrand buildings, typical for the end of the 19th century, form the most urban edge to the site. Opposite, on the eastern side, a pictorial avenue of plane trees along the Sihl forms a more natural border to the site and therefore a strong contrast to the heavy infrastructure and the city. The northern edge of the site is quite shallow as the highway exit is crossing the river walk and cutting off the connection to the large open ground of the Sihlhölzli sports facilities. Due to these very different border conditions it is a site with a highly ambivalent atmosphere. As the existing buildings on the site all work from an urbanistical point of view and a removal of the Sihlhochstrasse is currently not considered as realistic, the focus of the project should be on accepting the infrastructural circumstances and clearing the spatially vague area opposite the Sihlhölzli sports facilities in between the highway bridges and the riverside of the Sihl.
THE RETURN OF CRAFTSMANSHIP INTO THE CITY
Instead of working against the spirit of this infrastructural place it is all about absorbing its energy and using it to productively enhance the situation. Located right where the highway enters the city, it shall serve as a hub connecting the urban centre to its surrounding suburban and rural areas. The empty plot - unsuitable for a good residential development - is used to reintroduce craftsmanship and production industry back to the city. This goes together with the idea to re-establish a city of functional diversity rather than one following the failed modernist ideal of the separation of functions. By this it becomes possible to reconnect Wiedikon to its lost industrial past and to add a new layer of activity to the area, which allows experiencing more aspects of life integrated in the city fabric. The building, working as a kind of industrial hotel, is able to inhabit businesses of the most different kinds of which some will remain, others grow or shrink or leave again and make place for new ideas. These changes won‘t pass traceless, but the building will remain firmly withstanding these eruptions. Though the building is mainly considered as a place of work it should not become an insular object within the city. By adding other functions, such as living or a public restaurant and sports facilities it shall become a social condenser enabling an interaction and encounter of the different social spheres of life. The automobile will presumably go through radical changes in the near future. Firstly it will be powered by electricity instead of fuel and secondly AI will replace the driver. But still, due to its ability to reach every place, regardless the existence of a network of public transportation, the car will remain relevant for quite some time in the future. This is especially the case for people such as construction workers who often operate in the less developed suburban and rural areas around the dense city core. For this reason the building is made accessible for cars over all of its storeys.
URBAN CONFIGURATION
By implementing a new suitable use, a new piece is added into the city fabric to repair the currently rather indistinct situation of poor urban quality. The building completely occupies the area between the highway entrance ramp, the river walk along the Sihl and the Sihlhölzli sports facilities. This clarifies the urban situation on all sides of the building. A porous articulation of the ground floor interface intensifies the surrounding public space and anchors the building to the site. The northern main facade forms an appropriate vis-à-vis to the monumental sports hall of the Sihlhölzli and spatially defines the large open sports field. The highway exit, which currently cuts through the river walk is lifted and led through the first floor of the building, thus enabling a continuity of the plane tree alley. The long curved side facades reflect the dynamic of the highway as well as the river and end in a sharp edge, which directs southwards to the highway and the outskirts of the city. With its tremendous size, the building joins the series of iconic monuments along the Sihl, such as the old Sihlpapier or the Electric Power Station Selnau, and proudly represents the material work.
SPATIAL ORGANISATION
A main entrance on the facade directed to the Sihlhölzli and six smaller entrances on the long side facades lead directly to the large circulation core with an in between climate at the heart of the building. The core forms the durable backspin of the building and contains the circulation areas for the cars as well as for the pedestrians. Thus it serves as a meeting space for sharing knowledge and creating synergies between the different businesses and inhabitants of the building. Further it encompasses all of the shared facilities as well as a large flexible hall, which can be used for technical purposes of the business, as for example to assemble large pieces of work, or for events serving the neighbourhood and the public. The 12 meter deep area between the core and the daylight of the facade has a floor-to-floor height of 6 meters and allows for a maximum of flexibility. The uses settling in this zone are docking to the core and take their technical supply from there. By this the zone becomes entirely free of other fixed installation elements, which would limit the possibilities of separating and connecting the spaces. The exterior load bearing structure further increases flexibility as it allows individual interior insulation according to the needs of the respective uses inhabiting the spaces. The top floor of the building is dedicated to living around a large open courtyard.
Diplomthema B I Frühlingssemester 2019 I ETH Zürich DARCH Professur Adam Caruso I Assistenten: Benjamin Groothuijse & Claudio Schneider Begleitfach Architektur und Kunst I Zilla Leutenegger I Professur Karin Sander Student: David Bühler I buedavi@student.ethz.ch
- The „Werkhof “ is forming a vis à vis to the Sihlhölzli Sports Hall - 1:1750