Modular Pavilion

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Modular Pavilion
Year: 2019-2025 | Location: Amsterdam, RAI | Status: Build | Client: Rijksoverheid, Dutch Government | Size: 105 m²
Designers: Raphaël Coutin, Hanna Lenart, Ivo Hulskamp, Tim Kouthoofd, Piotr Szczesniak
Special thanks to Remy van Zandbergen, Corradino Garofalo, Joan Velve Rafecas

This temporary pavilion is developed by Bygg Architecture & Design, for the real estate fair Provada in the RAI in Amsterdam. It was commissioned through public tender by the Rijksvastgoedbedrijf, the real estate organization of the Dutch government, and the pavilion is a significant example of fully circular design and construction.

Plug-In-Provada has been designed according to the open structures system, with recycled materials and elements. The use of the Open Structures system offers very flexible opportunities in terms of (re) usability, recognisability and sustainability.

Moreover, other items, such as chairs, tables and cabinets are all designed and produced from recycled materials. All interior elements in the pavilion are uniquely made for this application. The commission did include the design, the entire production, the construction on the venue, the dismantling and finally the storage for next use. The client intends to re-use the pavilion for the duration of six years, after which we will find new purpose for all the components in new circular projects, thus keeping the materials in an endless loop.

The pavilion is modular, removable, materials are kept intact as much as possible (not subdivided) and dimensions are commonly used, so that the parts remain intact and usable in the future, for a new sustainable purpose.

Meranti plank flooring from an old sports hall, still marked with original court lines, is reused in modular floor tiles and furniture for the pavilion. The intersecting court lines create a playful effect that highlights the reused nature of the material.
The floor originates from the former sports hall De Geusselt in Maastricht, dismantled for reuse by THT Sloop BV.
The boards were glued onto birch plywood tiles by Meubelfabriek Veldhuizen in Oirschot and cut to size using CNC techniques. Recesses were then added to make the tiles ready for installation on height-adjustable exhibition floor feet.

A set of 51 aluminum tilt-and-turn window frames, glazed, blue on the outside and white on the inside, has been repurposed as modular wall elements.

The windows originate from the Vlinderflats in the Tongelre district of Eindhoven, owned by housing corporation Woonbedrijf. During a renovation, the frames were replaced. The leftover frames were then available for reuse. The glass was immediately reused in construction, while the frames were cleaned, assembled to the wooden frames and the glass replaced with safety glass for exhibition purpose.

Based on the OpenStructures design system, the connectors are open-source, downloadable, and endlessly applicable within the OpenStructures framework. Designed by Bygg and manufactured by VDL-HMI in Helmond, the connectors are made from 4mm recycled sheet steel. They are used to connect furniture components and to mount elements onto wall structures. The shapes are laser-cut from sheet steel and then bent into form. Finally, the connectors were finished with a powder coating.