Urban Factory

The diploma project uses as a starting point the need to re-invent and redefine the common ground in the city. It suggests the design of a new urban ecosystem, of synergies and collaborations within a network. A new model is proposed, based on knowledge, skills and innovation, as well as, its spatial interpretetion in the urban context of Thessaloniki.

The starting point of the project URBAN FACTORY: a model of micro-production of the commons, is the need to reinvent and redefine the architectural practice as a tool in order to take advantage of the potentialities of the urban environment. These potentialities consist of our shared culture, the common pool of knowledge and the the in-between spaces that could act as catalysts for creation and personal development. As the technology advances and the economy turns towards the quaternary and quinary sector of production that are based on innovation, knowledge and skills, it is important to create the platforms and the networks, digital and physical, that will not only facilitate the exchange of the informations and techniques but will also lead to new synergies. Dealing holistically with an urban condition, means making circuits of collaborations, of production lines, of supplies and finally of education. In that way, it can be assured that the project will be sustainable and obtain a certain level of autonomy. By analyzing the urban areas as urban ecosystems and by identifying its needs and dynamics, we created a procedure through a shared platform, with which the people could be engaged to the urban change. At the same time the spatialisation of the procedure could suggest the design of urban spaces with a generative way that can take form in various contexts, which will eventually act as nodes of a supralocal network. In our case study, an area in the city of Thessaloniki was chosen and an old market as the main building of the project. The production line that was suggested incorporates the principles of, reuse, repair, refine, disassembly and recycle, as well as the concept of 'hybrid' making. Basic element of the design process are also the terms collection and education, as the model is knowledge-based. All these functions were used as basic layers of the synthesis, while exhibition and agora are layers that enhance the cohesion of the public democratic space. The building is no longer an object but rather a procedure and the human activity is the motivating force.