How About This...A Building Covered in Wind-Harnessing Straws
07/25/2013
featured Connect Curators’ Corner
Swedish architecture firm Belatchew Arkitekter has proposed a plan to cover Stockholm’s tallest residential building with thousands of furry-looking straws.
The functional design would not only cover the Söder Torn’s 26-story façade, but also extend 14 stories higher to create a wind tower that would possibly feature a sky lounge and rooftop platform with a view of the city. The straws would leverage piezoelectric properties to harness even a trace breeze into electrical energy, a concept that “could create the urban wind farm of the future,” Belatchew Arkitekter says in a press packet. The firm also promotes that the “Strawscraper” would have an ever-changing exterior “further reinforced at nighttime with lighting in changing colors.”
“What is usually considered to be the most static of all things, the building, suddenly comes alive and the construction gives the impression of a body that is breathing,” Belatchew Arkitekter says.
The straws would also bring the building to its originally planned height of 40 stories, which it never reached because architect Henning Larsen walked away from its construction after losing creative control over the project.
The Strawscraper is the first endeavor from Belatchew Labs, Belatchew Arkitekter’s new studio focused on exploring unprecedented solutions to urban and architectural issues.
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Here at Duggal we’re continuously involved in environmental initiatives, such as the Duggal Greenhouse and Lumi-Solair. In fact, our visionary founder Baldev Duggal recently discussed his innovative energy solutions with CEOCFO magazine.
So what do you think of the Strawscraper? We’re all for it and will surely stay tuned.