A Visit to Tipping Point East
I had the opportunity to visit Tipping Point East, a new circular construction hub in the Royal Docks, Newham. Created by and home to Yes Make, RESOLVE Collective and Material Cultures, the site brings together practices working at the intersection of design, construction and material reuse.
Alongside around 60 other visitors, we were guided through the material stores, offices and workshops that currently occupy a small portion of the site, with plans to expand significantly in the coming years. TPE collects, reclaims and redistributes materials to community groups and projects that prioritise reuse over virgin resources.
The storage yard feels somewhere between a depot and an archive. Shelves are stacked with museum plinths, surplus sheets of glass from major construction projects, and felled trees that would otherwise have been chipped - all held here, waiting for a second life.
It pushes me to think beyond making, considering both the waste generated in the workshop (very small offcuts in my case) and the longer life of each piece I make. What happens when it outlives its original home or purpose? It’s something I want to start addressing more directly in how I design and build.
Thank you to Sabine @ Zetteler for the invite & inspiring morning.
