Project RE_ is a collaborative entity between the Urban Design Build Studio, Construction Junction, and Trade Institute of Pittsburgh. The global mission is centered around work that is affordable, replicable, and site-specific; using reclaimed materials with traditional and digital fabrication tools. Project RE_ leases warehouse space within Construction Junction in the Point Breeze neighborhood of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. There is an entry marquee, two pavilions which house a community room, a gallery, and a design studio, and a workshop and assembly area.
program diagram
As part of the Urban Design Build Studio I was on the project team from August of 2013 through September of 2015. The project's, design, fabrication processes, construction schedule, and budget served to demonstrate the viability of Project RE_'s capability to build prefabricated homes for low income families while using reclaimed materials sourced through Construction Junction and built by apprentices of Trade Institute of Pittsburgh. The two pavilions are deconstructable to pieces one person and lift in the event Project RE_ needs to relocate.
This was an experience in collaboration, management, and client relations. I collaborated with students of other fields, with fabrication shops, with industry consultants, and with other community players including the project’s supporting partners. For example, I trained and learned from Trade Institute of Pittsburgh apprentices in supervising fabrication and construction while using schedules developed with graduate students of construction management. I took ownership of the seating element, ladder, and facade panels of the entry marquee, as well as the Canopy structure which cascades over the vestibule as it spans the two pavilions. The entry marquee, Project RE_Entry, demonstrates high-tech fabrication capacities and advertises the creative use of reclaimed hollow core doors from the Construction Junction retail floor as a pictorial composition of graphic facade panels. The Canopy serves as a low-tech continuation the digitally fabricated entry marquee structure to illustrate the range of design and construction tool capabilities paired with the narrative of reclaimed material from the Construction Junction retail floor becoming value-added products of the Project RE_ workshop.
Client interactions included meetings with presentations and divisive discussions on budget, timeline, and clients’ needs. The most enjoyable times were impromptu conversations on-site with clients about a profitable and replicable detail that evolved from experimenting with a reclaimed material.
Funders include The Heinz Endowment, Autodesk, Fork Motor Company, Laurel Foundation, Colcom Foundation, and Hillman Family Foundations.
Project RE_ was awarded an AIA Pennsylvania 2015 Architectural Excellence Design Award, Citation of Merit, the AIA Pittsburgh 2015 Award of Excellence, Architectural Detail + Craftsmanship, and the 2015 SEED Award for Excellence in Public Interest Design.
These collaborative business model diagrams are by John Folan.
Mike Gable of Construction Junction, Steve Shelton of Trade Institute of Pittsburgh, and John Folan of the Urban Design Build Studio, work to ensure the positive impact Project RE_ makes within Pittsburgh's communities. To discover more about Project RE_'s team, mission, and partnerships; Project RE_, Urban Design Build Studio, Construction Junction, Trade Institute of Pittsburgh.