AVS. Arkitektúr verktækni skipulag - 01.03.2004, Blaðsíða 44

Fjarðaál Smelter
Project 1st prize proposal in a recent competition.
TBL-Architects
TBL-Architects is a joint venture of
T.ark ehf, Batteríið ehf and Landslag
ehf as well as the consultants
Línuhönnun hf and the architectural
practice Ole Andersen ApS.
Design Strategy
TBL's design strategy is founded on
a few basic themes; a pragmatic but
ambitious environmental agenda, a
critical social agenda and a contem-
porary but regional aesthetic agenda.
One of our main design goals was to
fullfill those requested by the client,
which was to create the most envi-
ronmentally-friendly aluminium
smelter project in the world.
Aesthetically, most of the inspiration
is taken from the dramatic natural
setting in Reyðarfjörður and its ele-
ments. Design-wise, there is a funda-
mental difference in the approach to
the overall facility and the service
building. While the approach to the
facilities is one of economy, simplicity
and clarity of forms, the service
building is an articulated textbook in
passive climate control and efficien-
cy, where the focus is on warm
materials, such as wood and layered
surfaces. The factory is about the
appearance of the large scale from
far away, the service about intimacy
and closeness.The goal is for every-
thing to relate to everything else in
creating a cohesive symbiosis of
Fjarðaál, its environment, and the
community of eastern lceland.
Ecology
The entry puts strong emphasis on
sustainability and environmental
issues. Examples of this are issues
like natural ventilation where possi-
ble; reuse of cooling water energy for
house heating and snowmelting;
treatment of sewage and wastewater
through biological methods; handling
of solid waste, etc.
Services/Personell Building
The services will be combined and
relocated into a buílding of their own.
These include administration, per-
sonel, changing rooms, a cafeteria,
firestation, gatehouse, medical &
health centre and maintainance.
This facility is centrally located at the
entrance to Fjarðaál and acts as a
visitor’s center. In contrast to the
overall production facilities, its focus
is on nature up close, rather than
nature from afar. The focus is on nat-
ural materials, environmental issues,
warmth and human scale. It hugs the
beachline and rock wall close to the
ocean, focusing its views out over
the beach and the fjord.
Herring
The Potline buildings become geo-
metrically 8 units of 250 m long
aluminum extrutions, with gill-like
windows floating on the surface at
regular intervals. Their simple geome-
try will be nestled in between the
geometrical service buildings and the
cliff wall on the other side. Our notion
of them is as herring in a barrel, as
industrialisation of the east fjords of
lceland was mainly due to herring
fisheries in the 50’s and 60’s. Since
its disappearence in the late 60’s,
employment issues have been a
continuing concern in the east until
now. We are bringing the herring
back to Reyðarfjördur and
Eskifjördur. The „silver of the sea“
has been replaced with a new kind
of silver product.
Support Buildings
Facing the fjord and the main
entrance is a conglomeration of sup-
port buildings to the potline.The
architecture strategy towards those
buildings, in addition to their slightly
angular geometry, is to give them a
horizontal datum. The lower buildings
are all clad in dark gray aluminum
panels on a 3m (9ft) concrete base
as a protection against wear. Fligher
buildings will be clad in natural alu-
minum cladding down to the con-
crete base. This will give a sense of
order to the composition, where the
dark base creates a horizontal base
out of which these white elements
protrude.This strategy allows for flexi-
bility and freedom in the size and lay-
out of these support buildings, which
ensures efficiency of materials - on
this scale this is not only a cost fac-
tor but also an environmental issue.
Vegetation
Planting of vegetation will be strategi-
cally used to control weather condi-
tons and to create a warm and
humane interface within the Fjarðaál
area. The biggest emphasis will be
on the canteen and office building,
where the goal is to create an
engaging exterior extension for the
building.
All plants will be native to lceland and
selected for their suitability and mini-
mum maintenance. Sample islands
of the local vegetation will be relocat-
ed and interspersed into the
reconstructed area to support and
sustain the natural local fauna on the
site. In proximity to the service build-
ing, flowering bushes and low
hedges will frame an inviting outdoor
area.
Wind
Wind at the plant is primarily affected
by the buildings, in direct relation to
their height. Concerning the ventila-
tion of the plant, there is no reason
to slow down the wind. But for
pedestrians wind is a nuisance and,
especially in lceland, even a security
risk. In accordance with the compa-
ny security strategy - that internal
traffic on the site shall mainly be
pedestrian - it is important to shield
pedestrians from wind and rain-
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