Sweet Potatoes Offices and Workshops: Thick Walls

1985

Construction System, Monocoque Construction

A custom made set of thick wall components, all premanufactured with the same height, standardized thickness, and a variety of standardized lengths, to enable the realization of a variety of rooms, as they were laid out by the users. All panels were built out of 1/2" plywood, with 3/4" plywood ribs for stiffening. The set included simple solid panels, panels with openings, as well as panels with built-in shelves, drawers, cupboards, work counter, catalog counters, depending on the choice of the users. When installed in place, connected with the vertical trims and painted it looked like a continuous wall.

Created by:

Christopher Alexander, Artemis Anninou, Gary Black

Content of

Project

Offices and Workshops for Sweet Potatoes Children's Clothing Factory 1985 to 1986

1509A San Pablo Avenue, 94702, Berkeley, CA, U.S.A.

Offices & Workshops, Office Furniture, Realized , Construction completed in Apr-1986

Client:

Mrs. Anna Sala, Ms. Josie Jurcivina

C.E.S. staff:

Christopher Alexander, Artemis Anninou, Gary Black, Mark Brinner

Contractor:

Center for Environmetal Structure

Project cost:

$20,000

Design and construction process:

1) Layout of the offices by "Sweet Potatoes" employees: They used a patented office furniture layout process developed by C.E.S. This process allowed users to work with C.E.S. staff to lay out all common areas and individual workstations for themselves. The result was a highly personalized plan of the office, generated entirely by "Sweet Potatoes" employees. 2) Design and fabrication of the individual pieces of furniture at the C.E.S. Workshop in Martinez 3) Installation of the furniture by C.E.S. Personnel: As pieces were completed, they were shipped to Sweet Potatoes, where the C.E.S. assembly crew installed the different items, including thick walls, columns, doorways, desks, lighting, ceilings, floors, cabinets, screens, chairs.

Project stages:

Office layout process used by clients Layout on site by clients and C.E.S. Design Development drawings done after layout Direct Construction management and on-site design decisions

2,300 square feet of interior office space for the management and administrative staff for "Sweet Potatoes" clothing factory to accommodate two partners and eleven employees. All interior furnishings, walls, floors, ceilings, lighting, built-in cabinets, desks, storage, chairs, tables, custom fitted ...

Contents

Drawings

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Photographs

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References

Scientific Research

Innovative Construction Systems, Techniques and Materials

Areas of focus:

Design and Building Process

Guiding idea:

Construction Innovation

One of the main topics of research, included in every building project, was to identify, early on in the design process, the material and techniques of construction. This would re-establish building as an art, and allow rapid shaping and adaptation, ...