Did you catch any coverage of the 2014 Winter Olympics in Sochi? We have to say we were happy to see the upcycled Samsung shipping container building, the Galaxy Studios. Although the games have now come to a close, the containers from the Samsung shipping container building will continue to be utilised in Russia. The containers have now been donated to an educational facility for further use. Read on for the full story.

Made up of 16 used shipping containers, the Samsung shipping container building was the upcycled star of the Olympic park. The used containers were sourced from all over Russia and then refurbished and painted in bright primary colours. Once restored, the containers were then brought to Sochi where they were assembled onsite for use. The containers were stacked like bricks and formed the outer wall to Samsung’s Galaxy Studios pavilion.  The ends of each container featured full-sized glass windows to allow natural light in. The shipping containers were staggered at the bottom level to include entrance doors. On the inside the shipping containers were used for information booths, display walls and stages for the Samsung performances and presentations.

The Samsung shipping container building in Sochi is not Samsung’s first building that utilises upcycled shipping containers. Samsung has also previously built a solar-powered shipping container school in Phomolong, a rural area near Johannesburg in South Africa. This environmentally friendly schoolhouse receives up to 9 hours of electricity a days from the solar photo-voltaic panels installed on the shipping container’s roof. The 21 student classroom functions as the school’s internet lab and is equipped with internet-enabled notebooks and Samsung Galaxy tablets.

We applaud Samsung’s commitment to sustainability and corporate social responsibility and look forward to seeing their upcoming initiatives.

Sources: Treehugger  & Design Boom