Nikken Sekkei Ltd. and ArchiTech Co., Ltd. Jointly Host the Student Architecture Competition “1st Tsunagi Competition—Making Mochi”

Nikken Sekkei Ltd. (Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; Representative Director President and CEO: Atsushi Omatsu; hereinafter “Nikken Sekkei”) collaborated in June 2021 with ArhiTech Co., Ltd. (Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture; Representative Director: Takuya Ito;hereinafter “ArchiTech”) to host an architectural design competition on BEAVER, a platform for architecture students operated by ArchiTech, to design “Mochi”—a transitional space between “Forest” and “City.”

"Call for Submissions"

The theme of the first session is “Making ‘Mochi.’”
To promote sustainable forest management and wood utilization, we need the concept of “Mochi”—an idea where forests and cities are not seen as opposing elements, but are seamlessly connected, working together to share challenges and translate them into action.
This competition broadly solicits ideas from architecture students and student teams nationwide—focused on solving social issues and related to spatial design and usage—using the “Tsunagi-ki*” system conceived by Nikken Sekkei’s Nikken Wood Lab. Together with the judges, we will engage in discussions aimed at bringing these ideas to fruition.

Mr. Yasuhiro Kotomo (Representative Director, Kotomo Lumber Co., Ltd.)
Mr. Yuji Okuda (Director and Head of the Planning Department, Yamato-wa Co., Ltd.)
Hidetoshi Sawa (Representative, Sawa Hidetoshi Design & Environment / SAWADEE; Secretariat, NPO Katsu Energy Academy)
Ms. Asako Nagano (Standing Executive Director, NPO Manufacturing Life and Civilization Organization)
Tomohiko Yamanashi (Chief Design Officer, Nikken Sekkei Ltd., Senior Executive Officer)

Takuya Oba (Lab Leader, Nikken Wood Lab, Nikken Sekkei Ltd.)

《賞》
優秀賞 (3点)
賞金30万円
記念品
作品実現の可能性(二次審査後に別途協議)

つなぎ賞 (9点)
賞金1万円
記念品

《スケジュール》
応募登録 [8月16日(月)締切]
コンペHPの応募登録フォームより
↓
作品登録 [7月12日(日) - 9月12日(日)]
BEAVERにイベント専用タグ(作品登録開始時に発表)をつけて作品を投稿
↓
First Round of Judging [Results Scheduled to Be Announced Around the End of September]
In the first round of judging, a total of 12 works will be selected: 10 chosen by the judges and 2 selected through public voting on BEAVER.
↓
二次審査 [10月中旬頃開催予定]
二次審査ではZoomを用いたオンライン審査を通して各賞を決定していきます。

《応募方法》
コンペHPにて応募登録を行った上、作品登録期間中にイベント専用タグをつけて作品を投稿してください。
応募作品については、日建設計が開発した『つな木※』を用いたデザインをしてください。

《運営》
主催
つなぎコンペ実行委員会(ArchiTech・日建設計)
後援
林野庁
日本木材青壮年団体連合会
協力
武蔵野大学専任講師　太田裕通 氏

In an effort to explore a new approach to architectural competitions that differs from traditional ones, this competition has established the following guidelines.

• We aim to take a different approach from traditional competitions, which rank entries to determine a first-place winner.
• This competition will provide an opportunity to match designers and design teams with local stakeholders to collaborate on actual projects. (However, steps toward implementation will be discussed separately after the competition concludes.)
• We will make the evaluation criteria and process as transparent as possible and provide feedback to applicants.

Launched in November 2018, BEAVER is a web service built around the theme “Everything an architecture student needs is right here,” designed to be a constant companion for students aspiring to pursue architecture throughout their academic careers.

• BEAVER offers a tutorial service for architectural IT software—a subject rarely covered in college courses.
• A project-sharing service where users can post their own design projects and view projects created by students from across the country
• It includes a job-hunting support service that allows you to easily create a web portfolio summarizing your achievements and use it to find matching companies.

We aim to create a better environment for the architecture industry by enhancing architecture students’ IT literacy and connecting them with companies, thereby promoting the digitization of the entire architecture industry through a bottom-up approach.

ArchiTech, Inc. is an architecture-focused startup founded by CEO Takuya Ito while he was on leave from the graduate school at Kyoto University’s Faculty of Engineering, Department of Architecture, with the mission to “realize a world where beloved architecture continues to be created.”
Guided by this mission, the company operates services such as BEAVER—a platform for architecture students—BEAVER CAREER—a matching service connecting architecture students with architecture firms—and THE PERS—a studio specializing in architectural CG imagery and 3D modeling. In addition, it is engaged in a joint research project with Kyoto University focused on the visualization and quantification of design evaluation.
Company Name: ArchiTech Co., Ltd.
Address: Room 7, KUViC, 104, Kyoto University International Science Innovation Building, 36-1 Yoshida Honmachi, Sakyo-ku, Kyoto City, Kyoto Prefecture
Established: November 1, 2018
Representative Director: Takuya Ito

Nikken Sekkei is a professional services firm engaged in architectural design and supervision, urban design, and related research, planning, and consulting services.
Upholding our fundamental philosophy of “contributing to society through valuable work,” we have been committed to creating a better social environment for 120 years since our founding in 1900, striving to meet the needs of society and the diverse requests of our clients.
Company Name: Nikken Sekkei, Ltd.
Address: 2-18-3 Iidabashi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo
Established: June 1, 1950
Representative Director President and CEO: Atsushi Omatsu

社名 　　：ArchiTech株式会社
広報担当 ：遠藤
メール　 ：info@architech.co.jp
電話　　 ：050-5433-2931

*What is “Tsunagi-ki”?*
A wooden unit made from small-diameter lumber that can be easily assembled, disassembled, and relocated.The basic unit, consisting of solid wood squares, connecting pieces called “clamps,” and wheels for moving, can be easily assembled by “anyone, anywhere in Japan” in about 30 minutes. Using the same components, it can be adapted for various purposes, such as desks, shelves, benches, and planters.
It was developed by Nikken Wood Lab—which conducts research and development on wood and timber construction at Nikken Sekkei—with the aim of promoting the use of wood, which is essential for forest conservation in Japan.