TONY’S FARM

ORGANIC FARM,SHANGHAI
ABOUT

Architects : Playze
Area : 1060 sq.m
Year : 2011
Material used : Plastic
Properties of material : The green plastic shipping containers are reused for their adaptation,
structure and concept of sustainability.

● Tony’s Farm is the biggest organic food farm in Shanghai, which produces OFDC certified
(member of IFOAM) vegetables and fruits.
● The building has been designed as a continuous spatial sequence in order to physically
and visually connect various interior and exterior programs.
● The structural logic of the container is the framed box, which can be opened or left closed
towards the 6 orientations.
DESIGN FEATURES - Ground floor

● The systemic nature of the containers is countered with the adaptation to the specific
situations, like entrance, courtyard, office wing, terraces, etc.
● The different orientations towards the landscape of the farm, the functional requirements
and the spatial sequence are defining each situation of the layout in a specific way,
although the spatial framework is the container with its standardized dimensions.
● The cubing of the containers follows spatial and climatic demands.
● The cantilevering gesture marks the main entrance of the site.
● After the lobby, which is accentuated by a 3 stories high volume, they step out to an inner
courtyard, where they are picked up by electric cars to be brought to their hotel rooms,
distributed throughout the farm.
DESIGN FEATURES - First floor

● The second level allows a connection to the office wing of the building via 2 bridges.
● This part of the building complex is covered by the existing warehouse.
● The east facade has been sliced, so that the new container offices could find shelter
underneath the existing roof and form an new inner facade towards the production hall.
● The still visible steel beams of the containers in the interior, stand in contrast to the rather
rough and crude tectonic details of the freight container.
● The systemic nature of the containers is countered with the adaptation to the specific
situations, like entrance, courtyard, office wing, terraces, etc.
ENERGY EFFICIENT STRATEGIES

● In order to cope with the high aspirations of the client regarding the protection of the
environment, several strategies have been used to reduce the energy consumption of the
building.
● The entire structure is well insulated, even though the containers appear in it's raw form.
● The original container doors have been perforated and serve as external shading blinds at
the sun exposed facades to minimize solar heat gain.
● A geothermal heat pump delivers energy for the air conditioning and floor heating systems.
● Another ambition of the project is to reduce the energy hidden in construction materials, the
so called grey energy.
● The re-use of freight containers seemed adequate, first for its inherent structural autarky
and second for being a common metaphor for „recycled space“.
● The use of local bamboo products for indoor and outdoor flooring, as well as all the built-in
furniture additionally supports the ambition of constructing a truly sustainable building.