Subscribe to be notified of our upcoming conferences and news.

Nori Architects retrofits an office building facade with recycled materials

Brought to you by:

Nori Architects’ renovation of the Asanuma Corporation’s Nagoya Branch Office has given a 30-year-old, nearly all-glass office building in Aichi, Japan a new facade with primarily recycled natural materials. The Tokyo-based architecture firm was tasked with revamping the 8-story tower into a modern office space. As the firm described, “this project is an attempt to reconstruct buildings as a key element of this new material flow in the city, and to reposition architecture in a cycle that is good for people and the earth, by creating a delightful environment that is connected to the changing nature of light, wind, soil, trees, and plants.”

elevation of office building prior to renovation
The original 1990s Asanuma Corporation Nagoya Branch Office was almost entirely glass, as seen prior to renovation. (Jumpei Suzuki)
elevation of office building after renovation
The building’s facade was constructed from natural materials, shaping a future-looking office building. (Jumpei Suzuki)

Asanuma Corporation, a large, Osaka-based general contracting firm, worked directly with Nori Architects on the design, and later construction, of their new facade. Dubbed “Good Cycle Building 001,” in reference to the design and construction principles it has aimed to model, the renovation began with adjustments to the existing building’s frame. Rising eight floors above ground—31.4 meters (103 feet)—the building covers a total floor area of 2,781-square-meters (30,000-square-feet).