Life Cycle

LifeCycle is an ambitious proposal for 20,000 m2 housing project and commercial facilities on Kavel 1C in the Sluisbuurt of Amsterdam. The plan consisting of low-rise buildings and a tower is designed as a social and sustainable ecosystem. By making co-living and co-working an integral part of the building concept, there is a place for everyone in every age group or family composition.

The plot is located on a special place in the heart of the Sluisbuurt, adjacent to both a park and the main street. The change in direction of the urban plan is translated into into an architectural feature, in which the same twist takes place between the plinth, the base and the crown. This gives the tower a dynamic profile that appears differently from different points of view. The twist between the different volumes takes on a social meaning because the collective outdoor spaces and functions for the residents are located on the plateaus that are created.

The building connects the two urban extremes of the adjacent urban situations – the park and the urban street. The gradual transition between a private balcony, collective outdoor spaces and the park ensures social bonding for the most important target group of the apartments: families. At the same time the terraces, with large plantings, offer plants and animals the opportunity to find their way up.

The construction sector is massively looking for sustainable construction concepts, with timber construction and prefabrication seeming to be the holy grail. However, there are many wood projects that do not materialize, for technical and economic reasons. LifeCycle takes a different approach. Concrete is combined with smart use of wood and steel. This makes the building adaptable in the future. Roughly half of the concrete that is normally used in a residential tower creates a skeleton with double the lifespan.

Limiting energy needs and sustainably generated energy are important principles that find their place in the facade. A second skin around the tower creates space for balconies, planters and also PV panels with water reservoirs underneath that provide the plants with water in periods of drought. The placement of the PV panels has been optimized using a parametric model. In addition, the shell also provides shade in the summer months, minimizing the need to cool the apartments. The building has a particularly low energy requirement and is almost energy neutral.