Smog, noise, lack of water, high energy consumption – these are the problems that city dwellers must face more and more often. How to fight them? This challenge was taken by architects from the Tremend Studio, designing the Integrated Intermodal Metropolitan Station which shows the connection between architecture and ecology. The studio’s concept was noticed and honored by the jury of one of the most prestigious architectural competitions – World Building of the Year.
The Tremend Design Office is known for its implementation, which surprises with creative solutions and play with style, but also – special attention to the environment. Architects willingly use old objects in their realizations, to which they give new life, use materials obtained as a result of recycling, bring into the interior a lot of natural greenery. The best proof of the workshop’s commitment to environmental protection is the project of the Metropolitan Bus Station in Lublin, Poland.
The concept was awarded by the jury of one of the most prestigious architectural events – World Building of the Year, accompanying the World Architecture Festival. The project hit the shortlist of the competition in the infrastructure category. His presentation to the jury will be held in Amsterdam in December.
A new bus station will be built near the train station. New places, not only for integration in a friendly environment, but also to feel the closeness of nature in the heart of the city and make new friends, will be created here. For this purpose, the roof garden and the green wall are to create a green zone connecting the station with the Folk Park.
The project aims to revitalize the areas of the railway station, create a new urban tissue, is to answer the question of how to revitalize the areas of the railway station so that they become friendly to travellers and residents.
“Architecture of public places is evolving in my opinion in a very good direction. Combining different spaces, open shared zones favors establishing contacts. The communication center, which is to be built in Lublin, is to revive it for revitalization district and become a meeting place where people will be able to meet and spend together time in an attractive environment with green areas,” said the President of the Tremend Board, architect Magdalena Federowicz-Boule.
“The project is also a response to problems related to environmental protection and city life, such as smog, water and energy consumption, noise. It is an image of how we perceive the role of ecology in architecture.”
The building’s solid will be divided into two independent cubicles, wrapped in a glass conservatory in the form of large surfaces in the glass curtain technology. The northern façade of one of the cubicles was designed in the form of a green wall, while the eastern wall of the inner cube will be covered with architectural concrete slabs.
All rooms inside the station building will be separated from the hall by glazing – in addition, the administration rooms will be equipped with tinted windows.
This division of space is dictated not only by attention to the visual attractiveness of space, but above all – care for the environment. By placing the “building in the building” it will be possible to maintain a relatively low level of energy demand. The energy needed to heat the building will be obtained thanks to ground heat pumps.
Another solution that will reduce electricity consumption are energy-efficient LED luminaires. The degree of energy consumption will also be controlled by the use of motion detection, taking into account the intensity of lighting coming from outside and linking the operation of the system to the time of day, year and other external factors or signals from other building systems.
Depending on the type of facility, such active systems can reduce the energy demand of a lighting installation by 50%, thanks to which the reimbursement of investment costs in the control system is possible after only 3 years on average.
As a response to the increasingly widespread problem of smog, architects used an anti-smog block – a modern, photocatalytic material. It contains titanium dioxide that, when exposed to light, transforms toxic fumes into substances that are not harmful to health.
The support in maintaining proper air quality will also include plants – the project assumes planting species that are particularly conducive to the production of oxygen. Water needed for watering plants is to be obtained thanks to the rainwater treatment system. This is not the end of eco-friendly solutions – in the area of the station there will be bicycle stands and chargers for electronic cars and buses.
