Curving Walls Office Made of Recyclable Materials in India
The paper-based recyclable design by Studio VDGA was created for an electric-components manufacturing firm that is transitioning away from its past activity of producing gasoline and diesel car components.
Studio VDGA, an architecture firm based in Pune, founded by Deepak and Varsha Guggar in 2004 in India, has rebuilt an office utilising recyclable materials, cardboard materials cardboard and MDF partition walls. The four-story workplace for 100 workers in the Pimpri Chinchwad district has been given a new makeover, with recyclable materials. The architects say that the 1,3500 square-foot office area was designed with the notion of removing the traditional solid barriers and replacing them with honeycombed cardboard, which added texture and form to the space. Privacy, acoustic characteristics, and material stability were all kept in mind during the design process.
This workplace for an electronic components manufacturing company needed a distinctive brand to reflect their strategy of continual innovation. They desired a place that was distinct from the norm while maintaining utility. As a result, the concept of using honeycomb walls as the primary interior feature was developed. They have created textured dividers by enveloping the workstations, meeting zones, and lounges with free-flowing cardboard walls. The remaining interior components are kept modest while experimenting with the powerful texture.
Cardboard is technically as robust as any timber divider. It also does not need to be polished or painted. The usage of cardboard has been raised to an art form here since it is biodegradable, low cost, 100 per cent recyclable, and manufactured from the trash. The result is undulating, textured walls with a come-hither look that appear to be both sculptural and installation art.
In this stunning interior, the honeycomb board used is a low-cost carton product that is 100 per cent recyclable. Its excellent raw material and hexagonal inner cellular structure give great compression strength and stiffness, allowing it to endure impact and heavy loads. It also provides great sound absorption due to the thickness of the board. "We wanted to emphasise one aspect while keeping the others understated", said Studio VDGA. The honeycomb board provides an appealing as well as a functional solution for the reception backdrop, partition walls, and doors.
Because space was not an issue, each wall is nine inches thick and covered with MDF, providing excellent sound absorption and temperature insulation. Architects Guggar explains, "However, our use of cardboard is not only decoration or cladding. It is a component of the structure itself, and because it is lightweight, it reduces the dead load. Due to its excellent compression characteristics and stiffness, the recyclable material is frequently used in the shipping sector for pallets. It can bear impact and heavyweights. The manufacturer was surprised to learn of our planned usage when we purchased the cardboard, specifying the adhesive as well as the colour of the paper. He had never seen it used before."
Photography: Hemant Patil
