Urban Production 4.0

Industry has undergone remarkable transformations since the Industrial Revolution of the 19th century. Back then, production was characterized by its loud, mechanized, and polluting nature, leading to factories being relegated to the countryside. The 20th century witnessed the emergence of multi-storey facilities, serving as modern counterparts to chimneys but also segregating humans from machines and confining workers to compartments behind computers and under strip lights. In the 21st century, following the Digital Revolution, we're left questioning whether today's cleaner and quieter robotic manufacturing and office work can seamlessly coexist within the urban landscape. Could this integration establish a beneficial cycle of mutual exchange between industry and the city?

It’s a phenomenon LAVA collaborator the Fraunhofer Institute has coined as ‘Urban Production 4.0’ – a template for a productive working environment in the age of digital production where flexibility and spatial synergy incite future growth. “We tested it in the design for a new urban facility on the fringe of a city for a lens manufacturer, which required a new building to reorganize its factory to combine robotic production and research,” explains LAVA Partner Tobias Wallisser. “The companies’ focus on making the invisible visible inspired us to integrate industrial production, architecture, and life in an open and environmentally friendly way to share and expand perceptions across all levels of society.” The goal was that the factory could reward the city instead of draining it and induce pride in its community instead of disengaging it. Architectural design could provide a catalyst for a prosperous mutual exchange.

With manufacturing commanding approximately 24 percent of Germany’s economy and growing populations placing pressure on land use, vast facilities must not equate to dead space for communities but seamlessly integrate into and even enhance urban life. That’s why, instead of creating an impenetrable block of faceless façades, the scheme unfolds as a continuation of the urban plan, with a porous nature and radiating architectural language that breaks down its vast volume to a human scale—similarly to the design for the Detech Headquarters in Hanoi.

Instead of a typical gated entry that would close during evenings and weekends, LAVA actively draws the public inside with a meandering public boulevard and entrances positioned to intercept public transport and mobility terminals. Visitors can enjoy cafes and restaurants by day, spaces for educational and cultural events at the weekend, four lush terraced courtyards, or simply take a shortcut through. “A factory doesn't have to be a black box,” advocates Wallisser. “As the biggest employer in the city, production facilities such as this have an opportunity to cultivate trust, offer education, and hands-on experience, where each new user adds to the sustainability of the architecture."