Wuyishan Bamboo Raft Factory
Located atop a plateau in the rural Xingcun Town, Wuyishan Bamboo Raft Factory is a building complex for the manufacture and storage of bamboo rafts, used to sail the Nine Bend River in Wuyi Mountain for tourism. The site layout responds to the distinct programmatic, topographical, and climatic requirements. The main structure is constructed with in-situ concrete, hollow concrete blocks, and cement tiles. Bamboo and wood are used for sunshading, doors, and windows. By using the most basic elements, the architecture reveals its structural and material logic; and achieves a simple but not simpler aesthetics with a limited budget.
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Wuyishan Bamboo Raft Factory is a building complex for the manufacture and storage of bamboo rafts, used to sail the Nine Bend River in Wuyi Mountain for tourism. Each winter 22,000 bamboo stems are harvested which, following a storage period, are used to manufacture 1,800 bamboo rafts annually.
The site layout responds to the distinct programmatic, topographical, and climatic requirements. The “L” shaped manufacturing workshop accommodates six fire areas for the bending of the bamboo and the assembling of rafts. The interior of the workshop is an open layout of 14 meters span required for the working space. Natural light is filtered through oblique skylights, which are oriented northward in order to get softer and homogeneous light. Aside from the working areas, the workshop houses resting spaces, storage rooms, restrooms, courtyards, and other service functions.
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The office and dormitory building adopts a veranda layout, with offices occupying the first floor, and dormitory and cafeteria occupying the second floor. Bamboo stalks are applied along the veranda to form shading louvers, which also provide well-ventilated insulation. The main structure is constructed with in-situ concrete, hollow concrete blocks, and cement tiles. Bamboo and wood are used for sunshading, doors, and windows.
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The industrial character of the project discourages superfluous design. By using the most basic elements, the architecture reveals its structural and material logic; and achieves a simple but not simpler aesthetics with a limited budget.
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- Credit data
- Location: Xingcun Town, Wuyishan Mountain, Fujian, China
- Program: workshop, storage, office, dormitory
- Floor Area: 16,000 sq. m
- Design: 2011-2012
- Construction: 2012-2013
- Principal architect: HUA Li / TAO (Trace Architecture Office)
- Design team: HUA Li, Elisabet Aguilar Palau, Zhang Jie, Laijing Zhu, Lai Erxun, Martino Aviles, Jiang Nan, Shi Weiwen, LianJunqin
- Photographs: Su Shengliang