Plug & Play of Williamsburg

By the year 2050, humanity will be facing a serious resource scarcity. As such, there must be an avid pursuit of new and better techniques in living and working sustainably. Architecture can be at the forefront of this movement.

A revolutionary approach to building design and function, the Plug & Play Center in Williamsburg will serve as a living laboratory for the future. The research conducted at the center will greatly benefit the local community and the rest of the world, making known the latest developments in building performance and sustainable living. The form and program will be responsive to the changing demands of the community and world at large. This paradigm of self-sustaining building performance will aide in the development of new methodologies to harnessing energy, passive energy design, and food production.

A dynamic facade will take advantage of the specific environmental conditions of the site, and support experimentation in sustainable methodologies in building performance. A modular system will allow multiple experiments with multiple methods at a single time, with easy exchanging of panels on the faceted framing and potential for future expansion. Modularity allows for progressive adjustments to focus on each system as social/environmental/technological demands justify emphasis on certain systems over others.

The entire building is composed of a series of elements. Each contains the necessary structure, enclosure, and finish layers to be isolated or connected to other elements. These connections occurs through a newly developed plug system, which provides necessary structural connection while allowing MEP systems to transfer between elements. The modularity of the building ensures efficiency of construction, and adaptability of form and function.

Design 6 - spring 2017

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