Designed by Ryuichi Ashizawa Architect & Associates, factory in the Earth is an extension of the existing factory, reclaiming ground adjacent to the jungle in Johor, Malaysia. The factories in the 19th century gave priority to rationality and productivity, so we wanted to transcend the factory typology by incorporating elements that would make the Islamic workers proud of the new working environment they would be facing.
Photography: Kaori Ichikawa
Using the power of nature like rainwater, sunlight, the wind, geothermal heat, and vegetation, we wanted to minimize the production of harmful low carbon expelled to the environment making of the building a sustainable factory.

The plan intends to create a large green roof continuous with the ground extending the earth surface covering the lower functions and spaces. Photography: Kaori Ichikawa
The roof soil works improving greatly the efficiency of the factory space insolation. Space below is structurally arranged by a forest of hexagonally shaped pillars with a star-shaped top derived from the arabesque patterns from Islamic culture, a reference to the surrounding jungle. Rainwater that pours down the rooftop is pulled into an underground water storage tank through the pipes embedded in the pillars being used cyclically for plants watering. When flowing into the pond and the wind blows, the rainwater that pours down over the rooftop slope brings a cold breeze to the transitory space between exterior and interior under...