FABER by F O R is an industrial brownfield adaptive reuse of 2020 in Timișoara, Romania. On a €1,000/m² budget, it transformed a frail, 19th-century soap factory and storage warehouse into an 840 m² social-creative hub featuring a ground-floor event space and bistro, coupled with a first-floor co-working arena and makerspace.
The project advances social-ecological transformation by executing an extensive ecological site remediation and stabilizing a structurally compromised industrial asset through a 10cm sprayed-concrete jacket, foundations, and hidden beams. To slash its long-term operational carbon footprint, the building was highly insulated and outfitted with premium timber windows and doors. By utilizing durable, low-maintenance materials, introducing intermediate floor plates, and lowering the window apertures to ground level, the design maximizes public-street engagement while anchoring a vibrant, circular micro-economy for local artists and small entrepreneurs.
Timisoara
Romania
Industrial, Production
Office, Cultural Center
840 m2
19th century
2020