Woods Bagot, Tridente Architects and Bureau Proberts have been shortlisted for the 2015 World Architecture News (WAN) Awards.

Woods Bagot and Tridente’s collaborative effort in repurposing an Adelaide car manufacturing warehouse in into a vibrant mixed use precinct has earned them a place on the six-strong shortlist for the program’s Adaptive Reuse category. The Main Assembly Building and Pods (MAB) at Tonsley Park, Adelaide was commended by the jury who said they loved the way the architects repurposed the existing structure of the old Mitsubishi manufacturing building, saving 90,000 tons of carbon without compromising on functionality.

“It’s taken a dinosaur of hugely embodied energy and turned it into a contemporary series of places of quality and functional relevance,” said one jury member.

“It’s beautiful, I love the way they’ve retained most of the structure,” said another.

Photography by Sam Noonan

MAB will compete against five international projects for the 2015 WAN Adaptive Reuse Award including the transformed 1919-built Commodore Criterion building in New York by Foster + Partners.

Australia’s Bureau Proberts have also been shortlisted, their much-awarded Silt Apartments in Brisbane will face off against five other projects for the 2015 Residential category.

“I like the relationship of the original concept; the idea of the water and mud - it’s related to a big idea, and it’s been carried through carefully” commented one jury member.

“For such an urban scheme it feels quite homely, I like the tactility of the materials,” said another.

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Photography by Christopher Frederick-Jones

Now in its eighth year, the WAN Awards has evolved into the world’s largest international architectural awards programme. The program is unique in that it is delivered in two month cycles over the course of the year and is split into five major categories as well as 16 Specialist categories.

So far the Education, Healthcare and Civic Building prizes have been revealed from the major categories, with the remaining two, Residential and Commercial, due to be announced in January 2016.

Australia has taken home one award from the entire program so far and it came from the Specialty categories. Sydney’s recently opened Barangaroo Reserve by PWP Landscape Architecture took out the Waterfront category prize back in November 2015.

An overall winner for the Residential Category is due to be announced on 26 January 2016 while the winner of the Adaptive Reuse category was due on 18 January.

Nathan Johnson

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