Divergence

Idea projektu

This project is a proposed Business and Startup Hub located in Quseir, Egypt, developed in response to the city’s economic decline, youth migration, and untapped cultural and geographic assets. Once a thriving Red Sea trade port, Quseir has faced stagnation due to the collapse of the phosphate industry and the absence of platforms for economic development. This project seeks to reposition Quseir as a contemporary global destination for innovation, entrepreneurship, and investment.

The central idea is to create a spatial and institutional ecosystem that supports business incubation, economic activation, and cultural engagement. By bridging the gap between local startups and international business networks, the project offers opportunities for young entrepreneurs to grow in place, rather than migrate in search of prospects. At the same time, it revives the city’s trading legacy in a modern context — not through extraction, but through knowledge, connectivity, and clean energy.
Goals & Objectives:
-Reintroduce Quseir as a global platform for trade, investment, and innovation.
-Provide infrastructure and visibility for emerging businesses and creative startups.
-Support youth retention by building systems that cultivate self-initiated enterprise.
-Integrate clean energy assembly (LiFePO₄ batteries) as a strategic economic layer.
-Reposition Quseir as A global Destination fro businessmen and digital nomads.

Popis projektu

“Divergence” is a multi-layered Business and Startup Hub embedded within the terrain of Quseir, Egypt. The project responds to the city's economic stagnation and youth migration by offering an alternative to departure: an architectural and social infrastructure that empowers young entrepreneurs, attracts global investors, and reconnects Quseir to its historic identity as a hub for trade. Through a carved form that descends into the landscape, the building organizes itself into three programmatic layers — a public market deck, a central entrepreneurship floor, and a production hub for LiFePO₄ battery assembly inspired by the city's phosphate legacy. The architecture acts as a bridge between community and capital, startups and established businesses, tradition and innovation. It is designed to foster opportunity, regenerate local economies, and position Quseir as a rising global destination for business events, innovation, and investment — all while maintaining a minimal environmental footprint through passive systems and topography-driven design.

Technické informace

The project’s primary structural system consists of reinforced concrete frames, strategically embedded into the sloped terrain of Quseir. These frames support the main vertical cores and public-level slabs, providing stability and mass where the building interacts with the ground.
In areas where the building cantilevers outward — particularly over the market edge and viewing platforms — the structure transitions into a steel box truss system. These cantilevers are designed as closed box structures, with trusses along all four sides (top, bottom, and both lateral faces), leaving only the front and rear faces open. This system distributes loads efficiently back to the concrete frame, enabling long overhangs without compromising structural integrity.
The vertical light wells, which serve both as passive environmental systems and vertical battery assembly zones, are framed with steel columns arranged in a grid and braced both horizontally and diagonally. These frames accommodate the movement of robotic arms and overhead battery conveyor rails, while allowing for natural light and cross-ventilation to flow through the full building height. The integration of steel structural logic within the vertical shafts contrasts with the solidity of the concrete frame, visually expressing the hybrid nature of the building’s function — stability below, adaptability above. This system allows the architecture to feel embedded yet light, grounded in terrain but reaching outward with engineered precision.

The LiFePO₄ battery assembly process is embedded into the building’s vertical infrastructure, transforming the light wells into active production shafts. Pre-fabricated components — including anodes, cathodes, and casings — are delivered to the lower level and lifted through a vertical conveyor belt integrated within the steel-framed light wells. Along these shafts, robotic arms are stationed at different levels to perform sequential tasks: component alignment, internal assembly, casing, sealing, and quality control. The open-frame steel structure ensures full accessibility, while natural ventilation helps regulate internal temperature during assembly. Once completed, the batteries are transferred horizontally to climate-controlled storage rooms, or routed directly to on-site startups for use in prototyping and testing. This assembly loop enables the project to support clean-tech innovation on site, repurposing Quseir’s phosphate legacy into a contemporary system of sustainable energy production.

The project’s material palette is inspired by the earthy tones of the desert landscape and the architectural heritage of Quseir. Local materials such as limestone, pigmented concrete, and palm wood were selected for their durability, availability, and visual connection to place. The warm, sandy hues and textured finishes reflect the city’s coastal identity and layered history, allowing the building to feel rooted in its environment while expressing a contemporary vision.