When Superuse Studios was asked to design a new reuse center in Maastricht, they presented their Superuse strategy. With leftover materials from the surrounding area a suitable design for the client was created. Within the design constraints a unique building for a construction budget comparable to that of a standard depot was built.
 
With this building Superuse Studios shows that it is possible for a business to realise its sustainable design and architectural ambitions at no extra cost. Through the colourful use of reclaimed materials and signpost wind rotor blade, the Kringloop Zuid reuse center is easily recognisable in both its activity and building.
 
Kringloop Zuid stands on the edge of Maastricht on a typical industrial site of plain, shed-like structures and little street traffic. Though typical of shed like structures, Kringloop Zuid stands out in several distinct ways and is by no means anonymous.
 
To begin with, a discarded wind turbine rotor blade standing 25m high is visible for kilometers and acts as a signpost directing visitors to the covered material collection and distribution loading bay. A distinctive 40m long, 6m high shopfront made of reclaimed window frames is highly visible from the street and reveals the 2,000sqm interior. And, the remaining facade is a colorful patchwork of steel cladding waste from a nearby steel factory.
 
The large indoor area allows goods and materials to be handled out of the weather. Openings in the building's facade allow not only for a well lit interior, but also for a lively and attractive exterior on all four sides. The use of reclaimed materials reinforces and underpins the building's role as a recycling center.
 
The window frames were harvested from apartment blocks being demolished to make way for the tunneling of the A2 motorway near Maastricht being undertaken by one of the Kringloop Zuid construction partners Strukton. These window frames are a major part of the Kringloop Zuid design, and make an historical link and reference to the apartment blocks and A2 motorway tunnel.
 
Large window openings and a Mondrian-esque pattern of colored steel cladding gives the building an attractive colourful look from every angle. The colored material is production waste from a steel factory in the neighbourhood. Although qualitatively the material is 'as new', material that does not meet an order's requirements is discarded. The designers were able to choose from a variety of cladding. By choosing one kind of profile, uniformity in the facade design was achieved even though a large colour range was used.
 
Adding value to waste streams on a large scale is an important ambition of Superuse Studios. This recycling centre consists of a mix of reclaimed and new materials. The process and budget influenced the choice of materials. The construction process resulted in teamwork commitment and dedication to material reuse from both the client, municipality and the various construction partners.
 
The realization of Kringloop Zuid and the large scale use of reclaimed window frames, steel cladding production waste, and waste wind turbine rotor blade marks a breakthrough in the scale at which Superuse of materials is possible.
 
Medewerkers/Team: Jan Jongert, Césare Peeren, Jeroen Bergsma, Floris Schiferli, Jos de Krieger
 
Superuse Studios is a Rotterdam based architecture office that utilises the contextual potential for design. A design is not considered as the beginning of a linear process but as a phase in a continuous cycle of creation and recreation, use and reuse. The latent properties of used materials and products offer an added value to new products and buildings. Our office views reuse as an integrated design strategy. The reuse concept applies to building materials as well as to energy supplies, human resources, water, traffic and food cycles. We develop strategies for cities to connect different loops, while integrating these processes into the existing urban environment. To get a grip on the complexity of all these aspects, most projects start with investigating the different relevant layers. Important layers are: existing location, context, energy sources, water, food systems, existing built structures, green structures, climate, materials, functionality, ergonomics, available budget, capacity of the project team. After mapping those layers we search for possible interconnections. This ultimately leads to a design that integrates all these aspects.
 
Office Structure - Even the way the office is organised is conceived as a cyclic development process; research, design, architecture and materials. In research potential waste-streams and regional cycles are investigated. Materials are gathered and tested before reuse and are then reused experimentally within projects in design. In this way knowledge is developed that will be used in architectural projects in architecture. Practical results are then evaluated by research. The materials for our projects are harvested by the materials department.
 
Blue Future - Our office is connected with the Blue Economy that is developing around the world. The colour of our logo expresses this connection and our aim to strengthen the movement with our work.
 
Photography: Fernando van Teijlingen