Industria: The Retrofit Institute Part 1 Project 2024 Johanna LuppLouise GogstadJack JohnsonEve Howe University of Bath | UK ‘Swindon lacks facilities that excite young people about their future.’ The stagnation of the town’s railway industry meant many residents lost not only their jobs but their hopes and motivations too.Sited adjacent to the derelict 1855 Mechanics Institute, which was once a beacon for teaching and innovation, The Retrofit Institute will regenerate local job opportunities by embracing future technology as a tool rather than competition in labour-intensive sectors. Inspired by fungal mycelia’s cross-pollination of knowledge, natural building material research labs enriched by workshops to up-skill construction professionals will promote research and development into sustainable solutions for retrofitting buildings.The unconventional material library serves as the public face, showcasing the institute’s catalogue of research. Over time, this will inhabit the accommodation blocks, whose waste is used to fertilise lab-grown natural materials. Sitting at the heart of the scheme spatially, thermally and structurally is the 1:1 prototyping workshop. A long-life frame, adorned with a loose fit, monthly-changing façade engages the people of Swindon with low-carbon innovative materials. Tested panels are rehomed in the material library, completing the cycle of production. Tutor(s)