MVRDV has transformed Shanghai‘s former cement factory into the GATE M West Bund Dream Center, a vibrant cultural and leisure district. The project is notable for its clever reuse of existing industrial structures, minimizing environmental impact and forging a unique visual identity with bright orange circulation elements. The monumental silos and factory buildings, like the M Factory, have been repurposed into dynamic spaces for events, restaurants, and even a climbing center, all while retaining their historical and imposing character.
Surrounding new constructions, featuring neutral facades and green roofs, seamlessly integrate shops and hotels, creating a cohesive public space that capitalizes on its waterfront setting. This exemplary urban regeneration merges past and present, illustrating how creative reuse can convert an industrial site into a popular, award-winning destination, celebrating industrial architecture and adapting it to contemporary leisure and cultural demands.
Client: Hua Zhi Men Capital
Architect: MVRDV
Founding Partner in charge: Jacob van Rijs
Partner: Wenchian Shi
Design Team: Kyo Suk Lee, Peter Chang, Sredej Bunnag, Luca Xu, Shanshan Wu, Yunxi Guo, Albert Parfonov, Amanda Galiana Ortega, Americo Iannazzone, Dorota Kaczmarek, Echo Zhai, Edvan Ardianto, Haocheng Yang, Jiameng Li, Jiani You, Kevin Zhao, Kristina Knauf, Meng Yang, Ming Kong, Martin Chen, Sen Yang, Shushen Zhang, Siyi Pan, Steven Smit, Tanja Dubbelaar, Xiaoliang Yu, Yayun Liu, Yihong Chen, Evan O’Sullivan, Peilu Chen
Visualisations: Antonio Luca Coco, Jaroslaw Jeda, Luca Piattelli, Marco Fabri, Stefania Trozzi
Director MVRDV Shanghai: Peter Chang
Copyright: MVRDV Winy Maas, Jacob van Rijs, Nathalie de Vries
Co-architect: AISA
Landscape architect: Field Operations
Structural: engineer: ARUP, AISA
Façade: consultant: RFR
Interior architect: CL3, Xu Studio
Lighting design: RDI
Photography: Xia Zhi, Liu Guowei, Tian Fangfang, Sanqian Visual Image Art
