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Ford Motor Company has unveiled their vision to transform its Research and Engineering Center in Dearborn, Michigan. Masterplanned by international architecture studio Snøhetta, the new design for the 350-acre campus reconfigures the company's workspaces, with a keen 21st century focus on smart technology and versatile mobility systems.
The master plan is the result of a two-year research and planning process, and when fulfilled, will consolidate Ford's presently dispersed employees into state-of-the-art facilities. The concept also stemmed from a year-long interview process involving over 40 employee focus groups and other masterplanning studies previously conducted by Ford.
Snøhetta's plan proposes a central campus hub at the site's northwest corner, where West Dearborn, regional transit and The Henry Ford Museum are within closest proximity. Provided renderings highlight vast differences in the built form and public realm of the campus, which today is defined by large swaths of surface parking lots, wide streets and sprawling buildings.
It proposes a complete rethink of the space by shifting attention to pedestrian and social areas which create nodes for recreation and collaboration. From complete streets to shared streets, the plan challenges the pervasive auto-centric typology that has long characterized the site, and much of North America's urban planning.
The original 1946 master plan for the Research and Engineering Center was initiated by Henry Ford II. The Ford Administrative Center later adopted his name, and significantly expanded space for the company's administrative and executive officials.
Upon full buildout of the scheme, the number of Ford employees working at the site is expected to nearly double from 11,000 to 20,000 people.
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