High Tech House Built From Shipping Containers

Posted on February 22, 2012

In today’s world there is need of building homes, which are tough and sturdy. Shipping containers can be reliably used as the foundation for such houses. Moreover, the best thing about shipping container houses is their portability and inexpensiveness. Recently, an architect named, Patrick Partouche came up with an idea of making a house with eight shipping containers within the countryside of Lille, France. The house is designed for single family use.

The most interesting aspect of the recycled shipping container house is its design and structure, which are both high tech. The construction was done by transporting containers through trucks and assembling them with cranes. It took three days for completing the whole setup. For the interior, the designer used industrial style, while not forgetting the use of quality material. The interior is stylized with checker plates, exposed conduit and metro wire, and it blends well with the exterior aesthetics of the container house. The architect has also used materials such as industrial lamps for lightning, old trunks for storage, handrail made out of wire,welded pipes and corrugated steel.

This house is a true reflection of how we can deal with durability and cost constraints of today’s world. It is symbolic of the new cult of innovative architecture, which employs the reuse of sources like shipping containers, without putting much strain over scarce resources.

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Loft Apartment Incoporates A Shipping Container Bedroom

Posted on February 15, 2012

Shipping containers continue to be a popular choice within the design world. Over recent weeks we have encountered several implementations including the beautifully constructed Shipping Container Starbucks location. Most of the designs incorporate containers on the exterior areas but very few designs feature shipping containers in interior areas, particularly in residential properties.

This is exactly what a couple have done in San Francisco in their 127 foot loft. The industrialized apartment was complemented nicely by the addition of two shipping containers that are used as the home’s guest bedroom and home office as these photos show.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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Student Housing Project Built From Over A Thousand Used Shipping Containers

Posted on February 2, 2012

Built in 2006, Keetwonen is an innovative student housing project in The Netherlands built from 1,050 used 40 foot shipping containers. At the time of construction it was seen as a huge gamble on the part of the Dutch administration, but it has paid off in a big way. The facility was intended to be decommissioned in 2011, but it’s been extended through to 2016.The containers were modified in China, and delivered into the port of Amsterdam. From there they were transported to site where, once assembled, they created the largest container city in the world.

On paper, a giant dormitory built off site, out of environmentally friendly shipping containers sounds great. The project saves vast amounts of both time and money, and limits the impact on the local community. The question that was asked at the time was, “what are we subjecting our students to by forcing them to live in a used, but nicely modified, shipping container?” The first image that comes to mind is that the containers will be backing hot in the summer, freezing cold in the winter, and with the student opening and closing 8’6” steel doors every time they need to go out.

The dormitories are very different from this. Every room in the dormitory has a private bathroom, balcony, kitchen, separate sleeping and study areas, and large windows that provide a great amount of daylight. The heating is supplied by a centralized natural gas boiler and for added security; each dorm room is equipped with a central phone connected to the main entrance.

The dormitories have incorporated environmentally friendly systems in their design. One of which is an integrated water collection facility whereby the roof of the facility is designed to collect and disperse rain water that serves as insulation for the building.

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Stacked Shipping Containers Used To Display Goods At Berlin Tradeshow

Posted on January 26, 2012

Shipping containers were used to showcase apparel brands at this year’s Bread & Butter Berlin (BBB). The containers were in an exclusive D.O.C.K (Department of Contemporary Keynotes) area where the limited floor space — always a problem at tradeshows — was utilized in an innovative way to maximize the number of exhibitors that could show their wares. The shipping containers were stacked on top of one another, in an industrial-looking setup that blended with the warehouse setting.

 

Bread & Butter is a well-known biannual tradeshow held in Berlin, Germany, that exhibits selected brands from across the world at the forefront of street and urban wear. The event attracts buyers and fashion enthusiasts globally to its Summer and Winter exhibits.

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Starbucks serves coffee from used shipping containers.

Posted on December 16, 2011

Starbucks serves coffee from used shipping containers.

Though it seems like you can get Starbucks coffee just about anywhere, only one store near Seattle in the USA can serve it to you from inside of used shipping containers. This week construction of a Starbucks out of four used High cube shipping containers. It will also be the only store to be setup for walk-up and drive-thru only—no lounge will be constructed.

More than just a quirky idea, there are (at least) two practical reasons for this type of assembly. The first is that it will almost certainly reduce the cost of store construction. The owner of an architectural firm that has experience building with new and used shipping containers, stated that construction in residential applications usually cut costs by 20 per cent, and the amount of construction time by up to 40 per cent in certain applications.

The other reason is that since shipping containers are very portable, they may open up new business opportunities. A Starbucks spokesman gave the example that a store could be assembled form used shipping containers in temporarily available locations, and later be transported and reassembled elsewhere. It seems this might also be a good way to test new locations before investing larger sums of money on permanent structures.

How long before we see these Starbuck stores made from used shipping containers appearing around the UK at festivals and events?

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