The project design is for the second phase of the Kengee Industrial Park, with a site of 3.2 acres (including plantations area). The landscape of the site was originally villages and ponds. Around 2010, as the city of Wuhan expanded, the surrounding agricultural villages were gradually expropriated and transformed into huge scale industrial estate site. Then the original villages were rapidly demolished, and replaced by rehousing blocks, new commercial housing and large-scale factories, while becoming an generic and monotonous suburban landscape.

Along with the disappearance of traditional villages comes the loss of familiar handmade traditions and the severing of relationships with the land.

Therefore, through the opportunity of this new construction project, we try to find a new mode of interaction and sharing for urban residents and local villagers, to re-establish the relationship with the local land, as well as to provide a more enriching and interesting place for communication and learning.

Firstly, the texture of the original village is restored with a non-orthogonal system and human scales. The appearance of the building is combined with the original topography of the potholed paddy field terrain to minimize earth work, and the building's skyline also gradually descends to the ground. 

Some of the interior spaces are 1m below the exterior and the windows are at a natural height and open to the inner street.

At the same time, in the central courtyard of the interior, a sunken treatment has been made to create an interior space with a greater sense of intimacy with nature.

The structural form of single-span frame with upturned beams allows natural light to be introduced into each space; and the interior features a de-decorated bare concrete ceiling due to the upturned beam structure. It also saves on costs of interior finishing and reduces energy consumption. Further, fields for crops are naturally formed between the upturned beam of the roof.

All the production processes and components of traditional farms are integrated here, the modern agriculture and food industry are actively interacting with the public in a positive and open vibe. Therefore, we tend to reinforce the interaction with people in our design, both in terms of visual proximity and a real sense of walking onto the roof. People can pick fruits and vegetables in the outdoor eco-farm, and then easily walk up to the roof along the undulating trend to experience the fun of the "Sky Farm", or participate in a baking class under the zigzag shaped roof.

The project utilizes a Ground-source heat pump system, an Air-conditioning end of heat radiation system and an All-air system. Summer cooling and winter heating maximize the use of soil energy storage and heat exchange for efficient cooling and heat exchange; therefore, energy-saving effect can reach over 40%. In addition, the roof planting system enhances the thermal insulation of the roof, it also uses a drip irrigation system combined with a visitor walkway, which together create a rich flow of visitors from the aerial to the interior. Based on the "Farm to table" concept of urban agriculture, this organic farming culture is combined with urban culture to shorten the supply chain between foods and customers, where the community and visitors celebrate the joy of labor and harvest.

Project title: Kengee Urban Farm
Location: Wuhan, China
Height: 9.2 m
No. of storeys ：2F
Area: 3824 ㎡
Site Area：15838 ㎡
Design Architect: Daipu Architects
Green Building Consultant：Zhang Deying
Structural Design：Li Liang
Electromechanical Design Team: Lei Ming, Wang Gepeng, Wang Xiang
Architectural Design Team: Daipu Architects
Design: 2011.11 – 2013.01

Awards: 2017 Macao International Design Exhibition