Ultra-Fast Charging Stations – The impact of electrified mobility will completely change how our cities look, feel and organize themselves in the future. Ultra-fast charging stations are a modular system for electric vehicles. The project is developed in cooperation with CLEVER. The ultra-fast charging stations minimize the charging time to 20 minutes and at the same time create a meaningful break for the driver and passengers and inspire for more green mobility.
Architizer chatted with Dan Stubbergaard, Architect and Founder at Cobe, to learn more about this project.
Architizer: What inspired the initial concept for your design?
Dan Stubbergaard: The ultra-fast charging stations are designed based on a green rethink of the conventional gas station – promoting green mobility and adding new high-quality urban spaces. Therefore, we’ve designed a sculptural charging station which can either stand alone or be incorporated with other facilities. The stations take the form of a series of structural ‘trees’, with a ‘trunk’ and a ‘crown’ that filters light and shade. The sculptural, sustainable wooden structure with integrated nature offers a green environment for people to relax, enjoy and get fresh air. The stations are constructed in FSC-certified wood, topped by solar panels or a green sedum roof absorbing both rain and CO2, and surrounded by trees, grass and shrubs selected in cooperation with the Danish Society for Nature Conservation with an ambition to enhance biodiversity around the stations.
© Cobe
What do you believe is the most unique or ‘standout’ component of the project?
One of the unique features of the design is the modular concept, which means that the charging stations can be tailored to fit any urban context. It is a modular assembly kit of canopies scalable for different contexts and conditions. The structure of one free-standing ‘tree’ can easily be multiplied to become a ‘forest’ depending on the required capacity of a specific site. Each new location will have its own unique scale, environment, and restraints. Functions will be added depending on the site’s scale and specific conditions. Scalability is one of the many qualities of the design. Each canopy unit is 4,45 meter high and has a grid measurement of 5,75 x 5,75 m. The units can be combined to compositions of various sizes, depending on the available footprint and the requirements of the future stations.
© Cobe
What was the greatest design challenge you faced during the project, and how did you navigate it?
According to WHO, 91% of the world’s population live in areas, where the level of toxins in the air exceeds recommended limits. Furthermore, research indicates increasing health related consequences from “urban stress” caused by noise and congestion. Visual and physical presence of natural elements and the sense of being “in nature” have a documented effect on stress levels of people and other health conditions of our lives in the city. This challenges the city to find innovative solutions to both the climate and “urban stress” issues. In contrast to conventional gas stations, the charging stations introduce a completely new identity for stations responding to the sustainable and green transition. The design contributes to strengthening the green transition as it becomes easier and faster to charge an EV anywhere in the country, which leads many to prioritize an EV.
© Cobe
© Cobe
Team members
CLEVER
For more on Ultra-Fast Charging Stations, please visit the in-depth project page on Architizer.