Saxum Vineyard Equipment Barn

Paso Robles, CA

How do you make a good first impression without your audience knowing you’ve even made one? As the first building visible upon entry, this modern pole barn uses reclaimed oil stem pipe and charred lumber to elegantly blend into the hillside and subtly announce Saxum’s commitment to sustainable practices.

The efficient and eco-friendly structural design begins with a minimalistic cast-in-place concrete foundation so that pervious gravel could line the vehicle storage bays and recharge water systems. Sprouting from the concrete are 10-ft-tall weathered steel columns that support a network of reclaimed Schedule 40 oilfield drill stem pipe varying in diameter from 2 to 3.5 inches, which together constitute the lateral system of diaphragm rod cross-bracing and vertical tension-only cross-braced frames.

Building the lateral system from old oil pipe was the main structural challenge. “When you’re working with existing materials, you don’t get to pick what you have, you have to work with what’s available,” says Michael Parolini. In lieu of an initial design, the team developed a selection guide that outlined minimum wall thicknesses, twisting and bending tolerances, and other qualities needed for this nonstructural material to provide structural integrity. Close coordination with the fabrication team was needed to ensure welds and attachments met strength requirements and that deflection was eliminated, creating the perfectly planar, angled roof.

Solar panels don’t just line the roof, they are the roof. Laminated glass solar modules are affixed to a rail system running perpendicular to the oil pipe armature. The rail system also conceals the photovoltaic wiring transferring the sun’s power, which amounts to approximately 88,697 kWh a year — enough to power the entire winery and all well pumps.

Saxum’s desire for a resilient, understated, and sustainable showpiece netted numerous awards for design excellence, including the AISC Ideas2 Merit Award, AIA National Small Projects Award, and the Good Design Award Architecture MasterPrize.