Tofu Factory

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

TOFU FACTORY

DnA

ARCHITECTS
DnA

PHOTOGRAPHS
Ziling Wang

ARCHITECT IN CHARGE
Tiantian Xu

CLIENT
Economic Cooperation Limited of Caizhai Village, Dadongba Town, Songyang County

LIGHTING DESIGN
Zhang Xin Studio, Architecture Department of Tsinghua University

AREA
1211 m²

CATEGORY
Factory

LOCATION
Lishui, China

YEAR
2018

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

Text description provided by architect.

Caizhai Village is a traditional mountain village built along both banks of a river over the past two hundred years. The village has always been known for its best tofu production in the county region.

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

But the products from the traditional family workshops could not fit into current food certificate standards to be able to sell in supermarket.

A new factory is programmed on a linear slope following the river by the village entrance, as a village collective economic entity on both on soybean supply and a villager union on tofu products, to upgrade the traditional tofu production.

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

The villager union operates the factory to engage family workshops as shareholders of this collective economic entity. In this way, the villagers are the immediate beneficiary and many farmers join the unions as well.

The building volume is spreading along the slope by six production functions: preparation room, grinding compartment, boiling compartment, deep-frying compartment, drying compartment, and tasting hall.

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

All the production spaces are designed and equipped to upgrade traditional tofu products fitting with food certificate requirements.

This will allow the tofu products to sell in city supermarkets and to increase the village economic revenue.

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

A covered walkway for visitors takes the steps up to observe the traditional tofu making process in sequence, and finally arrive at the tasting hall facing an open plaza to the south and the historical village fabric across the river.

Assembly timber structure system is applied to the building as a modern production factory and also creates a dialogue with the vernacular "tenon & mortis" wooden structure in old farm houses in the village.

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang

The factory is both production and exhibition space of traditional heritage for Caizhai village, and has already welcomed groups of primary school students to experience traditional tofu making.

Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang


Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang
Tofu Factory
© Ziling Wang


Tofu Factory
Master plan
Tofu Factory
GF plan


Tofu Factory
Perspective Section
Tofu Factory
Sections


Tofu Factory
Elevations
Tofu Factory
Site Axonometric
Tofu Factory
Exploded Diagram