WoZoCo A GoGo

A look at MVRDVs WoZoCo apartment building By Gaines Solomon

As the world population grows upward and outward, cities try what they can to preserve what is important to them. Amsterdam is facing an ever growing problem of density, effecting the condition of its green spaces. MVRDV, a Dutch architecture firm headed by Winy Mass, Jacob Van Rijs, and Nathalie de Vries, is a very dynamic group in their attempts to solve the architectural problems of today.

MVRDVs WoZoCo project is an apartment building for the elderly intended to have 100 units. Due to Dutch regulations on green space daylighting, the building could only be built large enough for 87 units and still fit onto its available footprint. MVRDV solved this dilemma by adding the remaining 13 units to the exterior of building without them touching the ground.

The design concept required a series of single and double story cantilevers jutting out of the northern facade. These protruded units are essentially the same size as the others, meaning the cantilevers are about the same length as the main building.

To achieve such a large cantilever, the architects employed a modified form of a pratt truss. These trusses are supported by large concrete columns as well as beams that extend the length of the main structure.

The pratt trusses used in the building have a series of diagonal steel braces. These members, along with the top chords, deal with the tension while the bottom chrords are subject to compression. When using steel, this is a very efficient design with minimal size.
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The main structure is essentially a Maisson - dom-ino design. The simplicity of the design and materials compensates for the expense of the cantilevered units

The northern facade is clad with glass to contrast the wood veneer cantilevers from the main structure.

The Southern Facade is the fenestration side for most of the units. Variance of the units is achieved by the random placement of the windows and balconies. Referred to as the small talk zone, the fenestration is intended to mimic the northern facade on a smaller scale.

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1 Athenaum.com. April 27, 2007. www.athenaeum.ch/amster12.htm 2 MVRDV. KM3: Excursions on Capacity. Actar, 2005 3 MVRDV. FARMAX. Actar, 1999 4 Cse.polyu.edu. June 10, 2004. www.cse.polyu.edu.hk/~cecspoon/
lwbt/Case_Studies/Wozoco/Wozoco.htm html

5 MVRDV.nl. 2006. www.mvrdv.nl/_v2/projects/015_wozoco/index. 6 Owlnet.rice.edu. March 26, 2006. www.owlnet.rice.edu/~arch214/

wozos%20final.pdf

7 e-jjj.com. 2006. www. http://www.e-jjj.com/images/news/content/20066240064160.jpg