Container House Renovation in Japan

Container house renovation has practical applications in Japan. Taking the Nagoya Asian Games as an example, it used container houses to accommodate athletes. Although this approach sparked controversy, it demonstrated the feasibility of container house renovation in specific scenarios.

Renovation Application Scenarios

To cut costs, the Nagoya Asian Games did not build a traditional centralized Asian Games Village. Instead, it used a combination of container houses, cruise ships, and scattered hotels to accommodate participants. Among them, about 2,000 athletes were housed in temporary iron-sheet container houses built beside the dock, neatly arranged in the Nagoya port area.

Renovation Interior Configuration

• Spatial Layout: Each unit consists of two households, with each household planned as a two-bedroom, one-living-room layout, providing accommodation for three people. The entire house features wooden decor, with one toilet, one bathroom, and a changing room. The small living room space is equipped with a refrigerator, sink, a washing machine, and an air conditioner.
• Bed Size: All beds in the rooms are single beds, measuring 195 centimeters in length and 90 centimeters in width. There is space under the beds for storing luggage, and extendable mattresses are provided for taller athletes. However, for basketball and volleyball players around two meters tall, their feet will hang off the bed when lying down; for a 90-centimeter-wide bed, a normal adult male's elbows will touch the bedside when lying flat with arms slightly extended.
• Spatial Limitations: The walkway between the two beds in a double-bed room is only wide enough for one person to stand, making the space cramped. There is not even enough room to squat down and open a suitcase. The height of the container house itself is a drawback. A standard container has an internal height of about 2.4 meters, and after installing a ceiling and floor, the net height may be only around 2.1 meters. A 1.9-meter-tall volleyball player standing inside can touch the ceiling with their raised palm.

Renovation Advantages and Subsequent Utilization

• Advantages: The organizing committee stated that containers are an environmentally friendly and simple solution for hosting the event. After the Asian Games, these container houses are planned to be converted into disaster evacuation centers and accommodation facilities for events.
• Other Cases: There are also cases in Japan where containers have been renovated into gallery hotels, studios, and offices. Through reasonable design and renovation, they can meet different usage needs.