Architects:Simple Architecture

Area:448m²

Year:2019

Photographs:Araksa Tea Garden

Manufacturers:Vectorworks

Lead Architect:Jan Glasmeier

Design Team:Juan Cuevas, Albert Company

Advisor On Earthen Brick Production:Jan Glasmeier

Construction By Local Community:Araksa

City:Mae Taeng

Country:Thailand

Text description provided by the architects. About Araksa - Araksa Tea Garden is situated on the foothills of the rich forest of Mae Tang, Thailand. This Boutique tea garden produces high-quality organic tea. The site is one of the oldest tea gardens in Thailand. Undisturbed for over 15 years until its new ownership, the tea plants have not been exposed to chemical pesticides or fertilizers. The goal was to design a new Tea House using sustainable and locally available materials and embed the building into its natural habitat of the Tea Garden. The whole construction process took almost two years, and the building was opened in late 2019.

Building Material - Selected by climatic properties, availability, ecological footprint and social factors, adobe bricks, and local secondhand timber became the two main material sources for the tea house. Soil originated on site had sufficient clay content. By mixing it with locally available rice husk we were able to produce eighteen-thousand Adobe bricks. After completing the production process, the bricks had been stored under a purpose build roof for the duration of a rainy season. Tree trunks found on site were used for the main structure of the building. Not a single tree was cut for the construction of this building.

Underneath the roof, we constructed thick walls to define different zones of usage. All walls were made from adobe bricks and plastered with a local lime mix (Din Utharadit). For the roof, we used about hundred-fifty thousand hand-pressed roof tiles, which we were able to purchase at a local tile-making factory. These hand-pressed roof tiles are very delicate and we had to make sure that tiles are not getting too wet during rainy seasons by following the minimum specifications for the inclination of the roof. The construction process took almost two years from pouring the first foundation to finishing the lime plastering of the walls.

Social Aspects - We committed ourselves to making sure the project meets the immediate needs and aligns with the long-term sustainability goals of Araksa Tea Garden. We hired workers with different skill sets from the local community and invested in locally available resources. During the construction process, we exchanged different building techniques and associated cultural experiences which resulted in a wider skill set for both parties.

Environment - To reduce CO2 emission, we mainly used locally available and natural materials, such as adobe bricks and second-hand timber. This resulted in minimal use of transportation and a reduction of immediate costs. Only for the foundations we had to use reinforced concrete to provide a strong base for the adobe walls and protect the earthen walls from possible flooding. Due to the heat-absorbing adobe walls, the strategic placement of the building within the tea garden, and the, therefore, resulting natural ventilation, no further means of cooling is needed. The arrangement and openness of the walls provide sufficient natural lighting to the inside of the building.

Project gallery

Project location

Address:Mae Taeng, Mae Taeng District, Chiang Mai 50150, Thailand