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Drivelines Studios 7 Storey Shipping Container Complex in Johannesburg
The South African city of Johannesburg has the world’s biggest inland port where container based traffic travels across Africa and onward to the rest of the world. Why not then celebrate this with a seven storey working / living complex made of up-cycled shipping containers?
Drivelines Studios
Image source: Wonderful Engineering
Designed and engineered by US Naples based LOT-EK architects, the triangular Drivelines Studios complex is situated in the heart of the up and coming Maboneng Precinct in Johannesburg.
The bottom floor is a shopping precinct while the upper six floors are studio apartments. They are connected with outdoor staircases and an elevator unit.
Studio apartments are open plan and necessarily quite small, though all the units have outdoor private balcony spaces that overlook the precinct below, connecting and dividing the residential spaces at the same time.
The apartments range from 27.8 square metres in size to 55.7 square metres in size for the biggest residential units.
Image source: Inhabitat
Residents have access to a communal swimming pool to chill out and relax in as well as an upper sun deck away from the hustle and bustle below.
According to LOT-EK, “As a leader in urban regeneration, over the past few years Propertuity has single-handedly transformed the heart of the Maboneng precinct into a vital hub of leisure, cultural and commercial life. Our building introduces also housing in this urban mix.”
Celebrating the inland port
As a pan-African transport hub, Johannesburg makes its money from trade and transport. This is why the idea of the shipping container complex sits so well in the city.
Inhabitat reported, “The upcycled shipping containers retain their original color and corrugated siding to reference their industrial past and to allude to the city’s reputation as the largest inland port in the world.”
Yes, the 140 containers are unpainted and have their original branding on them. This can be an ugly mix but LOT-EK seem to have chosen the containers carefully to get the branding to be appealing to the eye.
Image source: Inhabitat
The containers were taken from the inland port of Johannesburg and modified on site. They were insulated and windows / doors were cut out on site, and then stacked to create the visually appealing V-shaped precinct.
LOT-EK said in a statement that the Drivelines Studios site is a ‘billboard’ for the inland port. It said, “Embracing the triangular geometry of the site, Drivelines Studios is conceived as a billboard where two separate volumes of residential units are hinged at the narrow east end of the lot, framing the social space of the open interior courtyard”.
Gateway Container Sales
Based in Brisbane, Australia, Gateway Container Sales is a specialist in providing shipping containers for up-cycling and repurposing for projects like the Drivelines shipping container complex. Contact us today to discuss your needs!
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