Valladolid Middle school | BOUTIQUE DE ARQUITECTURA

“Secundaria Valladolid” (Valladolid Middle school) is a unique project within Mexico’s schooling infrastructure. From the start, the main objective was to create something innovative and appealing for the young students. One of the most challenging conditions was the short construction time, since the building had to be verified by the government in a specific date. These two factors inspired us to recycle marine storage containers and employ them as classrooms, reducing construction time and minimizing the environmental impact of the project. The complete project contemplates 15 classrooms. The first phase (now completed), consists of 5 areas; 3 classrooms, 1 computing room and 1 multifunctional laboratory (for physics, biology and chemistry classes). Complementary spaces such as washrooms, storage rooms and laboratory annex were also built. In order to make each element or unit, a 40 feet “High Cube” container was split in half and both ends were joined by an illumination juncture. This link, made with clear glass, permits natural illumination and ventilation. It is important to underscore that the structural reinforcements were determined by certified structural analysis. This was a very intricate process since there are not many built projects that use recycled containers. The lack of available information about the construction methods made this a very difficult project to accomplish. However, we were able to solve all the structural and engineering requirements (such as plumbing) through exhaustive analysis. During the construction process, there were many challenging situations to overcome such as the tight schedule, the logistics of execution, and the difficulties of assembly. “Boutique de Arquitectura” has a strong commitment with the environment, and for this project we sought to recycle marine storage containers in order to reduce the environmental impact of our building. Through this, we were able to save considerable amount of natural resources that are required in more traditional building methods. As a result, we’re able to extend the lifespan of these containers by giving them a new use.