Verwan Automobile Service Station

Project idea

Sri Lanka as a developing country actively engages in the automotive industry in terms of automobile services, restoration, assembly and now even production of its own high-end sportscar prototypes. Colombo being the commercial capital of the country hosts the majority of the automobile sales and services with linkage to other localities in the outstations reputed for the industry. Pothuhera is a similar township known potent for its domestic to industrial level contribution to the industry which is situated on the way to the Northern province from Colombo. To uplift automobile service provision and to empower the locality’s identity, “Verwan”- a multi-functional automobile service station is proposed within the urbanity involving an avant-garde architectural intervention to the local context in response to the future circumstances of limited land availability. The flexibility of its built form and functionality recognizes it as the architectural resolution to the thriving builtscapes.

Project description

Approach
The concept of the program is generated with the need to produce compact architecture as a result of the scarcity of land in the future. To maximize the utilization of land and to avoid vertical growth of built fabric resulting in various other environmental and social complications, multi-functionality of spaces is found eligible. To achieve this multi-purpose architecture with enhanced effectivity, concepts of modularity, flexibility, adaptability, and transformability of built forms come into being. Putting such concepts into motion enriches the versatility of the local architectural preferences.

Design in a nutshell…
Space distinctively functions in the day as a vehicle maintenance cum promotional space as well as in the night as a car show venue with a mobile pub and a rentable vehicle parking for the adjoined hotel as per request. Optionally the client uses it as a parking yard for the vehicles of his own construction company. The service station consists of …
1. A series of convertible car washing/ maintenance bays
2. The main building to house administration, client gathering, cafeteria, and staff accommodation spaces.
The main building has become a backdrop to the frontal bays to highlight the transformable elevations and to improve the building’s visibility from the roadside. A playable façade with distinctive color schemes is a work of aesthetics to enhance the building’s spirit.
 
Empowering sustainability
Ecological sustainability is a vital prospect of the proposed architecture. Despite its heavy service-oriented setting, space is attempting to employ greenery to enhance nourishment and habitability. Minimal impact on the land is ensured via lightly ground touching built structures. Wastewater treatment is an adopted strategy to mitigate groundwater pollution and to promote water reuse.
Achieving sociological sustainability is through establishing craftsmanship and sophistication on the newer adaptable architecture and employment of locals in diverse functions catered in the space to empower the local economy. Envisioning the technological interventions, the transformability of built structures experiments via exclusive construction materials and techniques. Prominence is given to the structural integrity of the produced architecture to minimalize its morphology and to enable efficient transformability.
Sustaining the environment

Concept
Design lightly touches the ground with the slightest impact on the land via lesser excavations or modifications to the terrain so that once the building is removed, the site reverts to its original state. Multi-functionality of the space harnesses the utmost from the occupied land preserving the unbuilt lands with its pristine composition of flora and fauna.

With the circumstances related to limited land availability, complications of compact built spaces and thereby to offer multi-functionality, future architecture should adopt transformability as a fundamental application.

Technical information

Materials
High-performance synthetic materials are employed in the construction to last longer with no effluents and the ability to reuse and recycle.

Maintenance
Low-maintenance has achieved via wear and tear-resistant material application as well as the detachability of built components easing repairs and replacements.

Energy usage
Fenestration, openings, and permeability of the building skin encourage natural light and ventilation to create proper working conditions with lesser energy consumed.

Water
In order to cut down the excessive usage of water for the automobile services, wastewater treatment units are employed for recycled use with contaminant filtration to reduce its harmful effect on the natural groundwater.
 
Waste management
Garbage disposal has been made efficient via a maneuverable garbage processing, conveying and containing system acquiring minimal space with hassle-free loading for transportation.