Project description by jury

Encompassing 353 hectares of land and 121 investment companies, the Phnom Penh Special Economic Zone (PPSEZ), in Cambodia, suffers from inadequate accommodation facilities for the 17,000-plus factory workers that live on site. Home Within House is a social housing project of 3,000 units for these workers and their families in the PPSEZ. Each dwelling is part of a cluster, which is formed by the alternating pattern of voids and solids, ensuring courtyards – one more private and one shared with the neighbors – on both sides of each 35m2 apartment. At the end of each cluster, double-height volumes contain passageways and common facilities, including shops, bike racks, and childcare that all assist in creating an inclusive environment. 

As a Main category prize winner in the regional Holcim Awards 2020, Upgrading Labor in Cambodia automatically qualified as a finalist in the Global Holcim Awards 2021.

View Global Holcim Awards Entry – Upgrading Labor in Cambodia

The built environment has a significant role to play in addressing climate change and enabling the transition to a net zero and more inclusive future. The Holcim Awards for Sustainable Construction global winners showcase the cutting edge of approaches to sustainable design, green architecture and materials innovation. In the 6th cycle, a Global Holcim Awards Bronze and two Global Commendations went to projects in the Asia Pacific region. The global prizes were presented at a handover ceremony at the International Architecture Biennale in Venice, Italy. The regional Holcim Awards Main category winners for Asia Pacific were recognized at the same event.

User comfort and wellbeing

By responding appropriately to the ecological context of the site and the requirements of factory workers, an extremely simple and aesthetically pleasing built environment is designed. Each home is part of a cluster, which is formed by the alternating pattern of voids and solids, ensuring courtyards on both sides of each apartment. The utility courtyard containing kitchen garden and the semi-open verandas acts as an extension to the entrance vestibule. On the other side, a band of green open space is the community courtyard, commonly enjoyed by living areas of each apartment. The compact form of housing modules and interconnected circulation routes at the ground and first-floor level makes the project easy to move around, contributing positively to its functionality, health and passive surveillance.

• The blocks are oriented to block east and west sun. The courtyards, windows and ventilators aid passive cooling, cross ventilation, and natural lighting, creating a comfortable micro-climate for each home reducing the operational energy cost.
• A robust composite structural system, with the majority of construction material sourced locally in the form of clay bricks, lowers the embodied carbon.
• Modular construction systems limit construction wastage.
• Site as part of SEZ with good proximity to factories reduces work transportation. The campus enjoys high-quality pedestrian and bike links to local amenities, leading to sustainable connectivity.
• 55% of the site is left in open regenerative condition with tree plantation to counter CO2 rise, this enhanced ecology leads to sustainable land use.