Open Architecture, a design firm based in Beijing and New York, was inspired by China’s rapid economic growth and the building boom it spawned in the past 10 years. The firm began researching construction methods, ways to streamline production, and temporary building techniques. They developed a system they called HEX-SYS.
HEX-SYS is a building system that can be adapted easily to serve multiple functions. The temporary buildings can be disassembled after they are used and then reassembled at another site. The buildings were designed this way in an effort to prevent the waste of resources.
Open Architecture explored the potential of building and the role of sustainability in architecture to develop HEX-SYS. They created a method of building structures quickly that is in keeping with China’s architectural heritage. The HEX-SYS system is based on ancient Chinese methods of building with wood. The system creates buildings that are light, industrialized, flexible, sustainable, and reusable.
Open Architecture recently completed its first HEX-SYS prototype. The temporary building is located in Guangzhou, China and was constructed for real estate firm Vanke.
The structure is light and is clad in sandblasted and anodized aluminum panels. The interior of the building is lined with bamboo, which is well known as a very environmentally friendly building material.
The building was constructed with hexagonal elements in reference to Le Corbusier’s work done at the Swiss Pavilion in Paris in the 1930s and to modular building in general. The modular parts can work together easily in many configurations.
Open Architecture designed three unit typologies that each span about 40 square meters and have an inverted umbrella form. Each column contains a pipe that collects rainwater, which is used for landscape irrigation. The prototype building required a minimal amount of excavation and site disruption.