The current method of parcel distribution in the urban area of Madrid is carried out by the use of various small-tonnage vehicles in multiple trips. As the practices of remote order-and-delivery consumption become preferable for the city, this ineffective model of parcel delivery have increasingly stressed the commute system by constantly generating traffic congestions, inappropriate parking, background noise pollution and greenhouse gases emission. 

In this thesis project, an alternative infrastructure of parcel shipping is proposed by using the Madrid subway circular line in combination with cargo bicycles. The centre of this new system operations and enterprise headquarters is the building of MetroPaq logistics centre.

The MetroPaq logistics centre is located on the Cantarranas plot in Ciudad Universitaria. The site qualifies as a strategic location due to the proximity to the A6 highway and subway tunnel.

Freights are supplied and orders are shipped from highway and subway respectively. The proposed public square on the ground floor takes advantage of being on the University Campus, providing collaborative programs that are open to both the university and the logistics industry. This area incorporates supporting services for the students and the business workers, spaces for the reuse of industrial materials, sports spaces, and cargo bikes facilities linked to the transport network.

The building complex is organised as a ring geometry to optimize the mobility of trucks interacting with the freights unloading plant. It is a radial structure of reinforced concrete frames, which supports a storage system that consists of Mecalux industrial shelves, operated by stacker cranes.

The ring complex is divided into five segments for different logistics business operators to occupy. The architectural flexibility from the shelving system allows companies to increase their storage capacity independently, as well as establishing the company's own offices depending on their need.

The storage area is protected from the weather by a translucent textile façade, made of polyester fibre and PVC, that reflects and projects the movement of the robotic elements through a system of hydraulic pistons. The different storage levels of the building are vertically connected by a series of package transportation helicoids to the underground plant, where the delivery orders are processed to be shipped to the consumer’s end via the subway terminal and then the further cargo bike riders.

Proyecto Final Máster Hab ETSAM. Escuela Técnica Superior de Arquitectura de Madrid, Unidad Aparicio, 2019.