Tag: Dr. Milinda Pathiraja

Cement production is a tedious process that requires long hours of continuous manpower combined with heavy machinery that grind through. Among the leading industrialists in the construction sector, Holcim (Lanka) Ltd. has established a widespread network that spans from cement manufacturing to promoting sustainable design approaches in architecture.  Hence, the design and construction of a worker’s quarters for their factory located at Puttalam is an enthusiastic and ambitious venture, where architect Milinda Pathiraja has tested the phenomena in design manifestation as an ideal collaboration between architecture- a vision for possibility, and production- the practical implications in construction.

This 4 bedroom residential design – crafted of brick and concrete – has been formally conceived of as a ‘wall’ expanded along its Cartesian coordinates, an object of three dimensional complexity, not just a planar element.  Moving away from the typical anti-urban stance of placing a house inside a tall perimeter wall, this design places the main structural elements perpendicular to the street (in plan), thereby immediately opening the street façade at the pedestrian level. A linear circulation spine starting from this street-entrance runs the length of the house: this is the principle organisational strategy dividing the house into ‘served and servant (service) spaces’.

Being a library building situated in the rural town of Ambepussa, which is a mesmerizing location with country views, this project aimed at re-organizing trade skills of army soldiers in the post war Sri Lanka. The craftsmanship of the soldiers was re-generated through this social library project where strategic training interventions were introduced to re-train the soldiers in building construction skills. The basic design approach of this project seems using creativity in architecture without harming the natural patterns of the existing landscape while relying on materials found from the site and its vicinity. Completed in 2016, this library caters to the soldiers and their family members, as well as to the neighbouring community, especially children who study in the nearby primary schools.