The London-based studio Kamvari Architects won first prize in the competition to design train stops along the world's longest railway line, along the Trans-Siberian Railway, a 9,289-kilometre route that connects Moscow with the Russian Far East.

Kamvari Architects's winning proposal is intended to combine traditional woodworking techniques with a form that mimics the movement of a train, a series of wooden cabins that look like big dinosaurs. At one end, each structure is designed to resemble a traditional gabled cabin, while the other end is stretched out and raised up towards the sky.

The projects was initiated by CDS NORD – a project delivery company that works alongside governmental departments – in partnership with competitions organiser Bee Breeders.

Judges praised Kamvari Architects' design as being both sustainable and rooted in the history of the railway.

Five of the cabins are scheduled to be built in early 2018, with more to follow, according to Omid Kamvari. Siberia accounts for 77 per cent of Russia's land area.  

Descripition of project by Kamvari Architects

Our design approach is driven by the pursuit of elegance.

Building on traditional forms combined with the dynamic nature of the railway the building forms seeks to express the speed of the train vs the stillness of the stations. Creating a timeless and calm interior which reflects local traditions and values.

Our innovative proposal seeks to address and explore the way in which architecture is evolving as a result of new digital tools and manufacturing techniques, combined with local traditions resulting in a design process which is capable of incorporating Local craft and environmental performance to create suitable and comfortable conditions for occupation.

We want to localise the global and , globalise the local through our design.

Inspired by local vernacular, materials and traditions our proposals attempts to build on and deliver a 21st century design.

The strong silhouette takes inspiration from local building forms, insuring that the designs delivers a new vision but still maintains a link to the locality. The variation in timber use as cladding also reflects regional shifts in the landscape and timber manufacturing.

The triangular wedge expressed in a dynamic and stretched form allows us to deal with local environmental conditions as well as unlock passive means of ventilation and heating and cooling.

The base of the Pod sits on 6x8m square with the pinnacles rising to 20m, creating a landmark and destination to point too. This makes the kiosk highly visible from anywhere close to the tracks but also makes station and stops visible from a distance, lifting the traditional form also expresses a sense of pride  in the railway and its achievement,

The interior builds on the spatial qualities of traditional designs in the regions, and where possible attempts to frame views and vistas which represent the tran-siberian route.

With Ample space for staff to work and rest the Pit stop is a unique design fit for the 21st century Siberian rail route.

Sustainability

Studying local vernacular architecture we adopt and use a trusted and proven building form.

Lifting the building off the ground allows us to control interior conditions but insulating from the winter cold in addition to insulating and cooling during the summer period.

The building form is tested through digital software against sunlight and air flow to insure it produces exterior conditions which are capable of hosting travellers but it also utilises passive means to keep cool and heat the interior conditions during specific period in the year. The funnel like pinnacle lifted above the building, condenses the air into a heatable volume which is then sucked through the structure minimising the use of external sources for heating and cooling.

The same strategy in hot days will protect users and the interior without the use of cooling devices by cross ventilating the space.

Constructibility

The entire scheme is designed to insure Constructibility, analysing and understanding local construction has allowed us to put forward a scheme which is lightweight and easy to deliver.

The form can be split into 2 pre-fabricated parts which are delivered to site using the railways tracks itself, lifted placed into position they are then simply joined to completed the structure.

The use of local materials and traditional crafts means they are easy maintained.

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Omid Kamvari. BA(Hons), AADipl, PgDip, AAMsc, RIBA, ARB. Omid studied for his architectural degree at the University of Greenwich before moving to the Architectural Association to complete his diploma and masters degree. For his masters he specialized in emergent technologies and design and was the digital coordinator for the AA canopy which was constructed on the college’s terrace.

While studying he spent a year working at Allies and Morrison where he became part of the London 2012 Olympics masterplanning team. On completing his masters Omid took up a position at Foster and Partners as a specialist modeller within Design Group 4. He contributed to numerous schemes including a retail park in Bratislava, a mixed used development in Santa Guilia, Italy, commercial offices in Morocco and hotel developments in Italy and Libya.

In 2008 he joined Hamiltons Architects where he established an advanced modelling group, specialising in computational processes and incorporating them into the practice’s design structure. He later became a group leader, applying his expertise in the field of parametric modelling analysis to a number of projects including the Tree of Life, a high end residential development in the UAE; Amby Valley, a mixed use development in India; and numerous commercial projects in the City of London.

In 2009 he joined Make architects, initially to work on Cherry Orchard Road, a 1 million sqft mixed use scheme which aims to transform the area surrounding East Croydon Station into a vibrant new civic focal point. He also contributed to the design of a marine conservation resort located off the coast of Dubai. The 40-acre floating archipelago will become an aquatic research centre, eco park and leisure resort which will be connected to the mainland via an underwater rail system. He later became a key member of the design team working on two new research institutions at Oxford University’s Old Road Campus, which sits alongside Make’s existing research building which was completed in 2007.

Omid joined Skidmore Owings and Merrill’s London office in 2010 to work on a high rise residential scheme near the Olympic park in Stratford which achieved planning prior to the Olympics. In addition he also contributed to a number of international projects, including the design of a hotel resort in Egypt and a residential tower situated near canary wharf in London.

Omid Is currently the Director of Kamvari Architects  which he established in 2011, He is currently working on a unique residential scheme in London as well as a boutique hotel in Tehran.

In addition to his work at Kamvari Architects, Omid is the programme Director of the Architectural Association’s Tehran and  Baku visiting schools, aimed at investigating architecture and urbanism in the Middle East. He previously directed the AA Muscat Visiting School and  has Taught on the AA Dubai Visiting School and is a senior lecturer at the University of Brighton and also sits on the RIBA validation and membership committees.

 
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Bijan Kamvari studied Architecture at the University of Tehran Graduating in 1971.

Over a carrier spanning 40 years he has worked on numerous projects within the public and private sectors. He has served on the board of directors of the association of Mass developers, the syndicate of construction companies and had acted as advisor to the housing ministry in Iran.

He is currently the Chairman of KamKav Property Investment and Development Company where he has overseen the design and delivery of close to 1million sqm of residential, commercial, and retail space within Iran.

He currently sits on the board of trustees of the Iranian association of architectural prominent figures, and was a member of the board of founders for Karafarin bank and insurance company.

He was also a founding member of Namavaran international investment company and served on the boards of directors of this company as well as Namavran Bana a subsidiary specialist development company.

In his previous role with this company he served as their CEO overseeing a period of unprecedented growth, which saw the company get listed on the Tehran Stock Exchange.

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