Factory City To Education City Mahi Matua: Whare Tapere Mahi Maha by Ying Bi and Siyu Bai is a highly esteemed winner of the very prestigious 2026 A' Design Award Parahi in Hoahoa Waihanga, Whare me te Hanganga Competition Category.
ParahiWaihanga· 2026
Factory City To Education City Mahi Matua: Whare Tapere Mahi Maha
A' Design Award Parahi Winner in Waihanga Category
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The Design
About Factory City To Education City Mahi Matua: Whare Tapere Mahi Maha
Kuputuhi Pukapuka: Ka whakaarohia anōtia e tēnei kaupapa te taonga tuku iho ahumahi o Ivrea hei puninga akoranga me ahurea o nāianei. Mā te whakamahi urutau anō i ngā hanganga raima e tū ana me te whakaurunga o ngā whare maitai modular hou, ka hurihia e te hoahoa tētahi taiao whakaputa o mua hei anga hononga mō te ako, te whakaaturanga, me te oranga tūmatanui. Ka hangaia tahitia e tētahi whare tapere, ngā wāhi mahi maha, me tētahi tuara whakawhitiwhiti tuwhera tētahi whenua ā-iwi ngāwari e tipu ai te maumahara ahumahi hei hoahoanga ora o te mātauranga.
The Recognition
About the A' Design Award Parahi
Ko Factory City To Education City Mahi Matua: Whare Tapere Mahi Maha te toa o te A' Design Award Parahi, he whakaaetanga tino whai mana e hoatu ana ki ngā hoahoa kōeke e tohua ana mā te auaha, te mahi mōhio me te whakaaro hōhonu. Ko ngā toa Parahi he mahi pukenga e rite ana, he auaha mīharo, e whakatūturu ana i te wheako nui, te whakaaro me te mōhio-ā-ringa o ā rātou kaihoahoa. E tūmanakohia ana ko Factory City To Education City Mahi Matua: Whare Tapere Mahi Maha he taonga whakanuia, whakamīharotia, aroha nui, he ngaio, he auaha hoki. Ko tēnei hoahoa i toa i te Parahi e whakauru ana i ngā tikanga pai rawa i te toi, te pūtaiao, te hoahoa me te hangarau, ā, he tino mīharo ki ngā taipitopito. Ka whakatutuki a Factory City To Education City Mahi Matua: Whare Tapere Mahi Maha i ngā hiahia, ka pā ki ngā hiahia, ka whakaoho i ngā kare-ā-roto, ā, ka kume i te pākiki.
Behind the Design
Press Kit
Credits, team members and technical details provided by the designer.
- Unique Properties
- The project transforms an industrial social-services complex into a modular educational campus. Existing concrete buildings are reactivated through light interventions, while new steel structures house a theatre and multifunctional spaces. A connecting public spine integrates learning, culture, landscape, and civic life, turning industrial heritage into a flexible framework for knowledge production.
- Dimensions & Packaging
- Approximate site area: 8,000 sq.m. The project consists of a theatre volume and a multifunctional educational building connected by semi open circulation. The theatre is approximately 15 m x 23 m x 16 m, using a long span steel roof structure. The multifunctional building is organized on three levels with modular structural bays. Main materials include existing reinforced concrete, steel framing, metal roof decking, insulation, waterproofing membrane, glazing, and perforated metal cladding.
- Tags
- adaptive reuse, industrial heritage, educational campus, modular steel structure, theatre design, multifunctional building, public space, civic architecture, Olivetti, Ivrea
- Production Technology
- The project is realized through a hybrid system of adaptive reuse and lightweight steel construction. Existing concrete structures are preserved and reactivated with minimal intervention, while new volumes use a modular steel frame, long span roof trusses, metal roof decking, insulated build-up roofing, and perforated metal cladding. The theatre integrates acoustic wall lining, suspended acoustic reflectors, lighting grids, sprinkler coordination, and mechanical ducts within a clear structural logic.
- Design Challenge
- The main challenge was to transform a historically industrial site into a contemporary educational and cultural campus without losing its original spatial identity. The design had to balance preservation and intervention, integrating existing concrete structures with new modular steel construction. Another key challenge was to create a clear relationship between theatre, learning spaces, and public circulation while maintaining flexibility, technical performance, and a strong civic character.
- Research
- The research investigates how industrial heritage can be transformed into a contemporary educational environment. It combines site analysis, historical study of Ivrea and the Olivetti legacy, program development, and architectural prototyping. The project studies adaptive reuse, modular steel construction, and spatial connectivity as strategies to integrate learning, performance, and public life within an existing industrial fabric.
- Inspiration
- The project is inspired by Ivrea's industrial legacy and the social vision of the Olivetti factory city. Rather than preserving the site as a static monument, the design explores how industrial structures can support contemporary education, culture, and public life. It draws from adaptive reuse, modular construction, and the transformation of production into knowledge.
- Project Duration
- The project was developed in 2026 as an architectural competition proposal for the Olivetti Theatre site in Ivrea, Italy. It explores the transformation of the former industrial context into a contemporary educational and cultural campus through adaptive reuse, modular construction, and public space integration.
- Operation Flow
- The project operates as a connected campus where learning, performance, and public life are brought together through a clear spatial sequence. Visitors move through open pathways, landscape platforms, and shared gathering spaces that link the existing buildings with the new theatre and multifunctional programs. This flow encourages informal interaction, flexible use, and a continuous relationship between education, culture, and civic activity.
- Patents
- Copyrights belong to Siyu Bai, Ying Bi, 2026.
- Team Members
- Ying Bi, Siyu Bai
- Image Credits
- Ying Bi, Siyu Bai
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