Most of us take the natural gas that powers our kitchen stoves for granted and most of us don’t even care about the conditions of people working in plants that produce and process natural gas for domestic use. Though we think that big oil corps that own these plants must have put in fabulous infrastructure for the convenience of these workers, life in plants like Gazprom’s Siberian unit is still a daily struggle since the permafrost makes it virtually impossible to have regular infrastructure in place. However, designer Slava Saakyan has created an innovative new concept for a Railway Station that would cater to the working settlement in the Gazprom plant based in the Siberia, Russia.
The Russian north is an area with severe weather conditions, but it is also one of the most gas-rich areas of the world which necessitates human settlement despite adverse climatic conditions. Railroads are the safest mode of transport for such weather conditions which means the Gazprom Railway Station Concept has to not only be ready to face the elements, it also has to cope with being the sole mass transport system in the area.
Since the area is largely uninhabitable, a public space like a railway station would also need to serve as a space that lets people socialize. The Gazprom Railway Station Concept was thus created not only serve as a place for boarding and unboarding of people and goods, but also as a public space that can accommodate up to 1,000 people and provide a spacious lounge and recreation area for workers and officers from the plant. Since permafrost in the area would make regular ground construction almost impossible, the Gazprom Railway Station Concept would be built on stilts allowing the building to remain steady even if the ice under it melts or moves. The streamlined shape of the railway station would also allow it to minimize heat loss and provide protection against blizzards and extreme weather. Polycarbonate surfaces would allow the Gazprom Railway Station make full use of daylight during the day.
(Thanks Slava Saakyan)