Every so often a project comes along that doesn't behave like a building at all, and this boat repairing workshop along the Maduru Oya river is one of those. The whole scheme is planned as a ring — individual work-bays and service rooms curving around a central open yard, where the boat itself comes rolling up out of the river on a rail trolley, right into the heart of the building for repair work.
Staff room, engineer room, electrical room, fire room and storage sit tucked into their own curved bays along the ring, with an elevated timber walkway threading them together and looking straight down onto the boat below. A spiral stair climbs up from this deck to a small look-out tower above, useful for keeping an eye on the water and the boats coming in. Toilets and two multi-purpose halls take up the remaining bays, while the safety and security rooms sit separately near the vehicle access, away from the main workshop ring.
Externally the whole thing is clad in corrugated metal sheeting, painted in a weathered teal-green that already feels like it belongs on the riverbank, raised up on stilts to stay well clear of the water. The curved, overlapping roof forms give the building a rhythm that is honestly more sculptural than most industrial sheds manage, without losing any of the practicality the client needed for day-to-day repair work.
A workshop, first and foremost — but one that we think earns its place along the river.
Design: Tropic Yard Design Studio