Sandy Cove Shipyard and Centre for the Industrial Arts
In the current architectural practice, designing for the Climate Emergency has become a must to move towards a circular economy that considers every resource as a part of a cycle, minimizing waste. Be it any waste, disposal is at an increasing rate that is polluting the whole surrounding, and all industries are accountable for encouraging a change in our disposing culture, among them, one of the most prominent in Newlyn and Penzance, the marine industry.
Geographically placed in the UK’s South Western peninsula, Newlyn and Penzance harbours arguably host one of the largest fishing fleets and marine sectors in the UK (Council n.d.). This also means that the historic harbours are directly linked to all processes in the marine industry, including the waste management of obsolete vessels, ships and fishing fleets.
And so, in line with the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals, the project proposes an architectural intervention that is mindful of waste management from the marine industry in tandem with a thriving economy that offers diverse and quality employment within the industry.
The architectural intervention focuses on an approach to waste management through a Marine Disposal and Shipbreaking Recycling facility compliant with IMO standards for dismantling end-of-life ships and marine transport into recyclable resources that can be recycled and reused in the built environment. The facility includes Training and Education for Dismantling and Recycling.
Timeline of Marine-related history - click to magnify
Skilled workers are trained to carry out the complex process of shipbreaking and deconstruction, which involves removing both lighter and heavier structural elements. These elements are then recycled and used for experimental reconstruction in the built environment, allowing for the exploration of new potential forms of architecture. The waste produced during this process is repurposed to create a new library of recycled materials and architectural details that can be used in new architectural interventions, including a Public Center and Viewing Platform.
The project aims to explore the possibilities of reassembling repurposed marine waste to transmute the traditional architectural language into a marine one, and find the converging point within the marine industry and built environment, and their structural similarities. The potential of this industry’s collaboration can be enormous, starting with a shift in waste management culture, the consideration of human scale to the urban one in the use of repurposed waste, and the inspiration from the marine structural approach to the traditional built one. Ultimately, it aims to create spaces for people in a more sustainable future.
Zostera Marina
Kelp and Seagrass
Chorda Filum species
Rock and other hard substrate
Seabed Topography every 20 mt
Relevant topography for proposed project
Kelp Forest
Land Topography every 10 mt
The shipyard takes the form of a floating structure supported by TLPs (Tension Leg Platforms) to become a national infrastructure, which can be funded by the IMO and removed as needed. The floating structure takes several configurations depending on demand. The complete infrastructure would accommodate a maximum of two graving docks The road is diverted offshore to future proof for rising sea levels.
