tokyo steel house by MDS built from a system of metal plates

‘tokyo steel house’ by MDS, tokyo, japanimage © hiroshi uedaall images courtesy of MDS

situated on a slender 5 meter by 16 meter plot, the ‘tokyo steel house’ by local practice MDS is a metal skeleton sitting on a reinforced concretefoundation that holds the subterranean garage. four floors are located within the steel construction, supported by composite steel beams sandwichedwithin wooden planks. the interior spaces are mostly all connected, functioning as a large continuous space, which helps regulate interior temperatureswith the thin timber panel finish acting as the only insulation, with a total wall thickness of 100 mm. an double-layered expanded metal wall represents the southern facade, together with a roof terrace and atrium plenty of light can get into the structure while obscuring visibility from the street.interior materials contrast the cold exterior appearance, with softer rubber tiles and tatami mats regulating the proportions of the separate functions inside.the construction was made to adapt to any environment, maximizing floor area on smaller site due to the thinness of the exterior envelope, using materialproperties and internal volume to regulate temperatures passively.

(left) approach(right) detail of the expanded metal screensimage © hiroshi ueda

expanded metal southern facade with operable windowsimage © hiroshi ueda

continuous interior space delineated by tatami proportionsimage © hiroshi ueda

interiorimage © hiroshi ueda

light stairs supported on thin metal dowelsimage © hiroshi ueda

living roomimage © hiroshi ueda

(left) bathroom(right) view from the top floor terraceimage © hiroshi ueda

construction of the thin metal envelopeimage © hiroshi ueda

image © hiroshi ueda

wood planks flank the thin metal joistsimage © hiroshi ueda

floor constructionimage © hiroshi ueda

floor plan / level 0

floor plan / level 1

floor plan / level 2

floor plan / level -1

section

section

project info:

location: minato-ku, tokyoprincipal use: residence structure: steelsite area: 84.23m2total floor area: 154.44m2 (49.90m2/1f, 49.14m2/2f, 31.68m2/3f, 23.72m2/b1f)exterior finish: galvanized color steel sheet standing-seam roofing , expanded metal fenceroof: galvanized color steel sheet standing-seam roofingfloor: rubber tile, tatamiwall: steel plate ceiling: acrylic emulsion paint + plaster board