NUK Sustainability Report

2026-06-25

From mural painting to spatial regeneration, the partnership between the National University of Kaohsiung (NUK) and AChord Music has continued for 13 years. As part of the university’s featured project, “Interdisciplinary Co-Creation: Field-Based Talent Development Program,” the Department of Architecture led 27 first-year students into the former AChord Music factory today under the theme “Soundscape Collection and Regeneration.” Through field investigation, soundscape recording, and spatial design, students proposed revitalization concepts for the historic local musical instrument factory, which has more than 70 years of history.

NUK President Chi-Ren Chen attended the final exhibition and critique session, where he reviewed students’ design works and exchanged ideas with faculty and students. He noted that NUK and AChord Music first began collaborating more than a decade ago, and that reconnecting through coursework today gives students a meaningful opportunity to learn in a real-world setting.

Chen emphasized that while AI tools can help students gather information and generate design ideas more efficiently, the most essential part of architectural education remains direct engagement with real sites and lived experience. By introducing first-year students to an actual project site early in their education, the course encourages them to observe environments, think spatially, and learn from real problems, thereby building the capacity to respond to social and environmental challenges.

Department Chair Yi-Chieh Chen explained that NUK’s collaboration with AChord Music dates back to 2013, when students from the former Department of Creative Design and Architecture created murals on the exterior walls of the AChord factory under the guidance of then-faculty member and now President Chi-Ren Chen, together with renowned spatial designer Yi-Cheng Hsu. Thirteen years later, the murals remain vivid, bearing witness to the long-standing relationship between NUK faculty, students, and local industry.

This renewed engagement with the former factory continues that partnership while allowing students to cultivate observational skills through historical context, industrial culture, and local environments. Through field-based practice, students learn how architecture connects with society, culture, and industry, while exploring new design possibilities at the intersection of tradition and innovation.

Ya-Chin Hsu, Chairperson of AChord Music Enterprise Co., Ltd., stated that the old factory in Ciaotou preserves not only the company’s 70-plus years of history but also important memories of Taiwan’s local musical instrument industry. In recent years, the company has continued to maintain and reorganize the old factory, hoping to extend the life of the historic site through cultural preservation and spatial revitalization.

Seeing NUK architecture students enter the factory and reinterpret the space through architectural thinking deeply moved her. She expressed hope that the partnership with NUK will continue, allowing students’ creativity to move beyond drawings and gradually take shape in real settings, injecting new life into historic spaces.

AChord Music CEO Che-Fu Liao encouraged students not to limit themselves because of their youth. He urged them to set goals early, pursue excellence, maintain an interdisciplinary learning mindset, and integrate knowledge from different fields to develop problem-solving abilities and distinctive strengths in their future architectural careers.

This first-year architectural design studio centered on the concept of soundscape and was jointly guided by Associate Professor Yu-Pin Ma, Assistant Professor Yi Chen, Assistant Professor Ning Tsai, and architect Ting-Chia Chang. Since the winter break, students have conducted case studies and site research, recording the soundscapes of the factory and its surrounding environment. They translated abstract auditory experiences into spatial vocabularies, which were then developed into architectural drawings and physical models.

The course integrated soundscape analysis, architectural representation, and digital modeling, cultivating students’ ability to move from sensory perception and analysis to design practice.

In addition to soundscape observation, students conducted site surveys, client interviews, environmental investigations, and conversations with local residents to better understand the local context. Their research was then transformed into design input.

The studio was divided into two phases. In the first phase, students completed measured drawings of the existing building, 3D models, and preliminary revitalization proposals. In the second phase, they further developed individual design projects. Through environmental observation, interviews, and local engagement, students gained a deeper understanding of the site’s physical space, historical background, and cultural context.

The exhibition also featured outcomes from the Architectural Design Representation course taught by Assistant Professor Ning Tsai, extending first-year students’ training in field observation and visual expression.

One project, “Spatial Collection of the Former AChord Factory,” guided students to observe the factory through field visits, photography, sketching, and integrated drawing. Students examined the site’s scale, structure, light, materials, openings, circulation, and traces of use, transforming their movement-based observations into technical pen drawings with spatial narratives. These works served as preliminary documentation for future adaptive reuse design.

Another project focused on Jianye New Village and Mingde New Village in Zuoying. Through field investigation, spatial collection, on-site sketching, and visual translation, students reexamined the historical layers, everyday life, and spatial relationships of Zuoying’s naval military dependents’ villages. Their works included unfolded elevations, plan perspectives, axonometric drawings, and local visual archives, presenting the villages’ contemporary conditions across restoration, habitation, repair, and exhibition.

After several weeks of intensive discussion with instructors, students completed 27 distinctive spatial regeneration proposals, which were exhibited at the former AChord Music factory. The works demonstrated a complete learning process from site observation and spatial analysis to architectural design.

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@Department of Architecture | Courses & Events