24282 days of memory – Ergang Innovative Park
In the main trend of the spatial layout of urban renewal gradually spread outward push, logon architect proposed solution strategy of non-core area of urban renewal. Implemented in the system of units during the integration of the city of heavy industry factory capacity, how to transition, industrial upgrading, industrial city after the exit to provide a new function space and public space, which is logon practice in Shanghai-Steel City Innovation Industrial Park.
Shanghai No. 2 Steel Co., Ltd. is a subsidiary of Baosteel Group, founded in 1942, and is the first wire rod manufacturer in China. The production and operation plant of Ergang is located in Yangpu District, Shanghai, with a total area of 290 acres (approximately 193,000 square meters), five kilometers away from Wujiaochang, the sub-center of the city. As a complete space of 200 acres of land in the middle of Shanghai, the Second Steel Plant was once the best memory of Shanghai's industrial glorious period, and it was also the place where the youth and blood of a generation of Shanghai resided. Since 2006, the factory has stopped steelmaking, and huge plant space has been idle. And Yangpu District, once a center of Shanghai's industry, has now become a gathering place for universities and scientific research institutions.
How to transform such a project? Logon’s design strategy has considered aspects such as research and evaluation of reservations and new buildings, adjustment of regional development intensity; functional reconstruction and re-layout of business formats; taking culture as the core and creating the spiritual label of the project, etc.
The renovation plan given by Logon positions this former factory as a multi-functional office park. In addition to providing diversified office space, the implantation of retail, hotel, leisure and cultural functions will build this place into a new city. public space. It retains the characteristics of the old industrial land, tells the history of the Second Steel Industrial Park, and has modern architecture, showing the quality of modern technology and space. The elements of the old and the new cooperate with each other to create a distinctive urban personality and enhance the sense of space in the urban neighborhood.
The choice has become the highlight of the preservation of the old building and the insertion of the new building. After in-depth site research, a series of existing buildings have a great opportunity to be converted into office facilities under the premise of saving costs. The architectural research was conducted in accordance with the following analytical standards: usability, functionality, structural conditions, geographical location, historical value, industrial characteristics and urban expressiveness. Many buildings with excellent appearance and maintenance are not suitable for new office buildings. On the contrary, some buildings that seem inconspicuous, but have characteristics suitable for their positioning function. After multiple screenings, the framed groups of buildings were completely preserved and remodeled, while those that were demolished paid attention to retaining some of their industrial features and implanted them in the landscape of the entire park.
The blending of the new and the old is the new image presented by the second steel project, which is like a new urban mixed-race work. It has the old age of the industry and the fresh vitality of modern architecture. Different design techniques such as renovation of old buildings, new buildings, and reservation of landmark buildings have realized the interaction of new and old, history and modernity, industrial civilization and modern service industry. Each square in the design is a fusion of new and old buildings. There are repaired and preserved in each small district, forming a landmark of historical significance. For the renovation of the old factory, Logon adopted a cautious approach. Every public space serves a multi-functional office park, where industrial features and modern styles collide and merge, and a more reasonable architecture emerges. Together they create a perfect fusion of old and new.
The mix of functional diversity is a challenging element for the regeneration of urban space. However, all building functions are graded according to their importance and distributed in different spaces according to the importance of the functions. The main function of the project is office, supplemented by other supporting service functions (hotel, apartment, catering, etc.). As for the function of office, the project also diversifies it, including headquarters office, creative office, incubation office, soho office, etc. These multifunctional volumes are concentrated in the park, forming a high degree of functional diversity, creating a truly attractive place.
Culture is the soul of a region and the foundation of a district society. Since the base was formerly made of steel, the manufacturing process of steel is used as inspiration and color source for landscape design. In order to preserve the passion and memory of the steel age, the whole plan chose the flowing water of smelting steel as the core of the project. That kind of tenacious, crystal clear steel solution that exudes the flame of life, and carries passion and dreams, is the most important memory card of this region.
The heritage park, the casting promenade and the dense green belt constitute the triple landscape zone of the park. Each landscape zone has its own unique and distinctive quality. The industrial corridor is the axis of the landscape in the entire Ergang City Innovation Industrial Park, which runs through the entire base area and shuttles between the buildings. As a preserved industrial element, the pillars form a corridor of walkways that connect the square with the various buildings inside the base. At the node of the red streamlined area is an amphitheater, which is enclosed by public steps and old buildings. Red is the main color of the entire base, symbolizing the industrial memory of steel casting and smelting. This is not only a unique visual element, but also functional, connecting many public spaces such as the entrance plaza, an Amphitheatre, and event plaza.
The site block uses industrial characteristic fragments as landscape design elements, and uses materials left over from the site to transform them into new design elements. Each small block has its own unique materials and characteristics.
The flourishing green park is located in the south of the base, providing users with a fresh and vivid green buffer zone. The park uses triangles as design elements, and this is the structural form commonly used in steel structures to awaken the architectural language of steel in the memory of visitors.
A series of industrial sculptures are distributed in the park. These sculptures are specially designed based on the raw materials of the factory by reusing the original industrial structure. Their memories are sealed in the new large-scale art installations, connecting the past and the present.
Different from the industrial transformation projects in the city center, Ergang's unique location provides an opportunity to meet the demands for new industrial space in the new era, integrating the demand for creative parks in the city center and the demand for office industrial parks in the suburbs. This also provides a new sample for the renovation and renewal of the fringe area of the city center.
