Rebirth After the Quake: TCC DAKA Unveils the “Nautilus Bibliotheca” as Its New Landmark

TCC Group Chairman Nelson Chang 's vision—that "factories should not only be places for production but also recreational parks, classrooms for learning and knowledge sharing, and museums for art collection"—has transformed from an aspiration into a tangible reality, drawing over 9.48 million visitors since TCC Group first opened the gates of its Hualien Heping Cement Plant to launch the DAKA Park in 2020. Although the park faced the severe test of the April 3, 2024 earthquake, TCC has demonstrated remarkable resilience by achieving rebirth after an extreme disaster. They have successfully repurposed the TCC 's DAKA Renewable Resource Recycling Center (RRRC) into a new space of knowledge and aesthetics: the Nautilus Bibliotheca. This move aims to allow more people to understand that a cement factory area can, in fact, become a source of inspiration and a temple of knowledge.

The Nautilus Bibliotheca is prominently located at the main entrance of TCC’s DAKA RRRC. The building's original design incorporates the golden ratio spiral, like the shell of the nautilus. This imagery, combined with the interior space, creates a venue that holds memory, imagination, and a spirit of exploration. The nautilus itself, a living fossil that has persisted for 450 million years, perfectly echoes TCC's commitment to the values of sustainability, circularity, and symbiosis.

Guided by a docent, visitors will "dive" into a space that holds memory, imagination, and exploration. The collection here transcends the boundaries of time and geography, forming a long corridor that synthesizes the core philosophies of civilizations both ancient and modern, Eastern and Western. Here, visitors can physically touch a replica of the Rosetta Stone from ancient Egypt and admire a Sumerian love poem clay tablet, hailed as humanity's earliest "love letter." These artifacts, spanning millennia, guide the audience to witness how humankind broke through chaos to establish order. From the Qin Shi Huang standard weight (Qin Quan), which unified the weights and measures of the six states, to the scientific and artistic masterpieces of various civilizations, every exhibit represents the accumulation and reflection of human wisdom. TCC Group Chairman Nelson Chang stated, "Every book is an echo left by philosophers and sages after their dialogue with the universe; every artifact is like a linguistic symbol that transcends a thousand years."

It's noteworthy that some of the extensive artifacts in this collection are recreated with TCC's refined cement craftsmanship, transforming cement from a cold construction material into an art form that transmits and recreates history. A prime example is "Infinite Cycle of Universal Peace" (Heping Wan Zong), personally conceptualized by Chairman Nelson Chang and cast with TCC's Ultra-High Performance Concrete (UHPC). Its surface features bas-reliefs of the Buddhist Dharma wheel, the Islamic star and crescent, the Christian cross, the Jewish Star of David, and the universal peace symbol, woven together into a Möbius strip with a globe at the base, symbolizing the eternal vision of the confluence of all faiths. Amidst current global conflicts like the war in Ukraine and the Middle East, this sculpture—originating from Heping (means "peace" in Chinese) Hualien—is not merely an artwork but TCC's deep aspiration for world peace. The piece invites every viewer to set aside prejudice, find common ground, and join in forging a path toward peace and coexistence.

The inauguration of the Nautilus Biliotheca holds profound significance for both TCC and Hualien. It's not just a new tourist highlight for TCC DAKA but also symbolizes the opportunity to find transformation and rebirth amidst adversity. Future tours at the Nautilus Bibliotheca will lead visitors to higher ground, offering a direct view of how the corporation, the land, and the community have worked together to rise again from the disaster. From this vantage point, visitors can overlook the rebuilt TCC Hoping Low-carbon Green Energy Park and the vast Pacific Ocean. They can also proceed to the "Cement Fantasy" to learn about TCC's journey toward low-carbon transition and globalization or explore biodiversity at the "Fern Garden." This venue, which seamlessly combines knowledge, art, and ecology, continues to realize the vision of shared prosperity between industry and society.