04 February 2019

Italian architects Onsitestudio have completed the Milan headquarters of an electrical product manufacturer, wrapped in profiled steel. The main purpose of the project is the overall reorganisation of an area used for the production of electrical converters, located in an industrial compound along the Cassanese state highway, east of Milan. The main idea is to define the boundaries of the production site by building a continuous wall to create a feeling of an enclosed urban block. The building “thickens” this wall near the angle, separating the internal space from the external one, with an internal garden and public spaces along the street . The project foresees research spaces on the ground floor, withdrawn and facing the internal garden and offices on the second floor. The volume folds around the angle and stretches out with two bodies, characterized by a continuous glass façade: the first body, facing the birch garden, is designed to be used for directors’ offices, while the second one, facing the street, will be used for the operating offices. On the far west side, in direction of the state road, the volume becomes a vertical body, with the tower hosting the technical stations. The metal skin, constituted by shaped and drilled sheet metal in opaque stainless steel, envelopes the building entirely like a curtain, thus conferring to the volume a balanced character, where the opaque and transparent portions are ambiguously defined. The skin filters the light into the building at different opening degrees, depending on the exposure to the sun and the degree of intimacy desired in the interior. The facades are completely defined by a metallic skin composed of opaque stainless steel shaped, perforated and stretched sheeting. The steel selected for this project is stainless AISI 304, with a 2 mm thickness and 4 to 4.5 m high sheets. The texture of the metallic elements has been developed in several phases trying to use common industrial elements, such as folded and perforated sheets, to then achieve a bespoke solution to follow the concept of a cladding whose variety can be shown at different levels, both in plan and elevation. In correspondence of the glazed elements the metallic cladding continues and maintains its shape, but it is perforated. The presence of many small oval holes allows the metallic skin to filter the light with various grades of opening in relation to the sun exposure and the level of intimacy of the internal spaces. Only the entrance which is characterised by zenithal light. The sensation for those who are inside is of an intimate and reserved environment with relaxing views over the green of the internal garden. The choice of the metallic cladding, as well as for the rest of the construction executed with the assembly of prefabricated elements (iron profiles for the structures and plasterboard panels for the partitions), has been dictated by the desire of slimming down and simplify the construction phase, while speeding up the phases, reducing the storage space for materials on site and improving the quality of the finished product. The building is designed to meet the class A energy efficiency requirements of CENED. The metal covering  has been designed to be covered with photovoltaic panels in amorphous silica. Energy efficiency is achieved through several strategies: a high performance covering system for both opaque and transparent portions, external shielding systems against solar radiation, internal curtains, technical systems based on heat pumps, he recovery of rain water for irrigation and high performance double glazing. Stratigraphy is organised as follows: a sandwich panel in wood and mineral wool with a thickness of 150 mm, coupled on the outside with a transpiring, watertight and UV resistant membrane, and completed on the inside by an insulated wall lining in plaster with 3 plates. (Fabiana Cambiaso) Credits: Onsitestudio Architects Friem Headquarters, Segrate (Milan, Italy) Building Surface: 2100 mq Opening: 2010 Materials: Steel, Wood and Mineral Wool Applications: Envelope Cladding, Solar Shading, Sandwich Panel www.onsitestudio.it Figures: © Filippo Romano; © Onsitestudio; © Helene Binet.

Carlo Bardelli

10/10/2018

The Paper Cathedral has been inaugurated, the church made of cardboard and designed in Christchurch, New Zealand.

The designer is Shigeru Ban, Japanese, known worldwide and called "the paper architect". He is famous for his innovative projects, made with cardboard tubes that become pillars, beams, wall. Houses, museums, lightweight and sustainable buildings, strong and durable collection. When he plans design, he works with natural glues, recycled paper around aluminum tubes; once dried, the paper slips off pipe and columns are treated with wax to be waterproofed. Ecofriendly design style, and fast too.

A new way of designing, increasingly sought emergency areas. Ban has made economic and rapid housing for earthquake victims in Kobe. Almost twenty years later, the Japanese architect has designed in New Zealand, a cardboard temporary church, replacing the damaged safe.

www.shigerubanarchitects.com  

Marco Mignatti

01 October 2018

A new architecture in Imola’s skyline. A cube designed with targeted policies to reduce the energy demand to improve comfort. This is an idea signed by A2 Studio Gasparri and Ricci Bitti Architetti Associati, which translates into a careful design of the exterior and an accurate choice of materials.

The facades to the East and North were entirely made out of glass on a steel frame. They allow maximum exploitation of solar radiation in the early hours of the morning without bothering with a bright light indoors. The two most elaborate facades are South and Southwest: they have not only an aesthetic function. It's a wrap created from a masonry almost devoid of views and a second skin in extra clear screenprinted glass panels that protect the most sun and wind exposed sides. Between the two layers, there is a cavity of about 80 cm, where the air circulates in a natural way, and it helps cool the surface in summer and retain warmth in winter.

The project focuses on transparency, opting for full-height windows and creating inside rooms separated by glass, so as to generate a visual continuum between the halls. An architecture that from afar evokes an ice cube from the many reflections of light, as you approach the eye is drawn to the complexity of the details, such as the relief surface, geometric motifs that recur in seemingly random fashion. At night the transparency is accentuated by the lighting design which makes the cube even more.

Cold items such as glass, white, soft light contrast with hot elements and materials: the red door, the use of stone, greenwood, external, internal dark wood. A game of elements that gives character and dynamism to building.

Marco Mignatti

10 October 2018

Designed by architects Paolo Brescia and Tommaso Principi from OBR, the new restaurant on the terrace of the Palace of Art, with the "Arts & Foods" Hall curated by Germano Celant, is one of the most important initiatives of the Triennale di Milano for Expo 2015. After restoring the roof terrace over the main hall according to the original plans by Giovanni Muzio, Triennale of Milan shows a new dimension of quality catering, prepared by Michelin-starred chef Stefano Cerveni. All of the Milan Triennale exhibition have defined a synthesis between design and architectural experimentation. At such times the Park was transformed into a theatrical platform of new myths for urban living and Muzio's building became an admirable cultural promotion device. The OBR project, winner of the competition organized by Triennale of Milan in January 2014, interprets the tradition with a lightweight, rigorous and dynamic solution. The restaurant is designed as a transparent greenhouse surrounded by greenery and suspended on the Sempione Park, with a spectacular view of the Castello Sforzesco and the entire skyline of Milan. Going up on the terrace of the Palazzo dell'Arte, you are greeted by an aromatic garden designed by landscape architect Antonio Perazzi, behind which the restaurant Glass Pavilion (33 x 5 metres), set back from the façade portals. “Triennale has always been a reference of social and cultural life of Milan. The restaurant like greenhouse suspended between the Park and the city was born from the idea of enhancing the terrace of Palazzo dell'Arte as a place strong urban sociability, evolving sensitive space that works under dynamic exchanges between inside and outside "-Paolo Brescia and Tommaso Principi explain. The Hall, which is completely open on the perimeter, is characterized by a light stainless steel modular structure which allows easy and fast mounting and dismounting directly in situ, combining industrial technology with craftsmanship. The structure design, engineered by Buro Happold and Milan Engineering and built by Capoferri firm, resumes the geometries of historic spans of Muzio. A large 400 square meter mobile tent floats suspended above the Glass Pavilion. Completely open on one side, it runs the Hall like a greenhouse, thermoregulating with different mode day/night and summer/winter bioclimatic use, and allowing guests to dine repaired by the sun or dining under the stars. As a video installation, the curtain suspended on greenhouse comes alive with images and lights designed by Guido Bianchi, referring to events sponsored by Triennale for Expo and providing guests with a unique experience between haute cuisine and design, suspended between the park and the city. The Pavilion is 33 meters long, 4.7 meters wide, 3 meters high and it has an area of about 150 square meters. The architectural design was developed by Paolo Brescia, Tommaso Principi and Andrea Casetto from OBR, with Maddalena D'alfonso, and it involves the construction of a glass Pavilion above the terrace of the Palazzo dell'Arte of Triennale di Milano, recently restored by the architect Alessandro Pedron.

Edoardo Croci

Requalification, recovery of buildings and cutting-edge technology to design the home of the future: this is what was presented at 51° Edition of the SAIE, international building exhibition in Italy.

At the heart of the new SALT SMART HOUSE, in the Services area of Bologna fair (held like the interior of a great intelligent and sustainable house), SMART HOUSE LIVING has been presented. This project consists of 4 souls: an exhibition – Smart House Solution – on which was represented a new culture of sustainable living, which allowed visitors to ' touch ' practical applications and innovative technological solutions; a playful and participatory path – the Wheel of Sustainability – to bring the public to the culture to "triple zero" (zero consumption, zero emissions, zero waste); the Forums on the themes of designing, building and inhabiting the houses of tomorrow; the BIG Energy Idea — a ' emotional room ' of innovation told through videos and sounds: a project to push for change through knowledge.

In SMART HOUSE LIVING area, energy has been the main topic thanks to the forum "Building & Innovation". In the Digital Smart Building technology how this innovation can revive the construction industry has been the main topic. Many laid optical fiber is still unused. Since last July with the Decree Unlock Italy, "all new buildings must be equipped with a passive multiservice physical infrastructure inside the building, consisting of adequate space and installation of high-speed communications to the fiber optic network termination points". The legislation makes the provision in new homes be mandatory. SAIE #Idrogeo has been the main new of this edition: it is an informative area and exhibition dedicated to the theme of recovery and securing of the territory from the hydrogeological point of view, that this year 2015 focused on the theme of urban land preservation thanks to the work of engineers and geotechnical in particular. 'Green' has been the guest star in new edition of SAIE, too. Inside the 'Live' path, #Landmaking group has organized ‘To build green’, an area where some of Italian excellences in the field of green have been gathered. The construction industry's interest is directed towards the energy efficiency of existing buildings, as well as through the performance improvement with the aid of new and more modern systems and engineering solutions.

18 December 2018

16,000 aluminium hexagonal modules characterize the Soumaya Museum in Mexico City, an impressive architecture created in six years by Fernando Romero architect. This building has more the characteristics of a sculpture, it was described as "dazzling", "flamboyant" and it was also called "impossible to build". But the South American architect (one of the youngest in the country) won the challenge. The difficulty was the exterior: a reflective and glossy façade, on which aluminum hexagons seem to hang in balance. It was a large and very heavy structure, for which it was necessary to design a skeleton of 28 vertical columns made of curved steel and seven reinforced slabs surrounding architecture. A lattice effect difficult to achieve and studied through a sophisticated technology software developed by an international Geometric network, that develops software and applications for the building. This software allowed the team of architects and engineers to display the project in a 3D model and to make all the necessary calculations to make the structure (apparently poised) be firmly and in balance. All the hexagons were positioned in digital, in order to study the orientation and the degree of curvature of the surface to fit the shape to the reticular pattern of base, also considering possible changes in natural steel and concrete structure. The result is surprising because the external pattern becomes fascinating setting that hides the support columns and almost 100,000 tubular elements of the structure. A curiosity: this architecture also wants to be a treasure trove. Wanted by Carlos Slim Helu, the wealthiest man in the world, the Soumaya Museum – named Slim's wife died in 1999 – retains a prestigious international art collection: it is the largest Latin America one, with 66 thousand artworks. Access to the collection is free. Since many Mexicans can't afford to travel abroad to see art collections, Carlos Slim Helu wanted to host a prestigious international collection in Mexico. The building includes a 20,000 square metres exhibition space divided among five floors, as well as an auditorium, bars, offices, a gift shop and a multi-purpose hall. The upper floor is the largest space of the Museum, with the suspended roof overlooking the city.   www.fr-ee.org www.geometrica.com.

Marco Mignatti

03 April 2019

Disegna composite board floorings, distributed in Italy exclusively by BHC, have introduced, in the outdoor space design, new expressive possibilities, through an exclusive, high-quality product. Now, it will be possible to carry out also the façades with this innovative material. Fruit of a continuous research work and a careful production process, the system of WPC ventilated façade (wood plastic composite), becomes so a reality. The boards forming the ventilated façade system by Disegna present two finishes: smooth and grooved. Each board is reversible, so that during the laying you can choose the desired finish. The laying technique taking place through a male-female assembly system, with stainless steel fixings, guarantees, at any time, a correct and stable laying without visible screws. The WPC boards produced by Disegna are the most advanced material, whose aesthetic component has been designed carefully to offer added value to the projects. The wide range of colours and finishes allows applying it in various combinations and situations, by creating exclusive designs making the difference. Design solutions are available at the showroom BHC in Milan, Como and Torino.

Edoardo Croci

5 Ottobre 2018

Molteplici esempi di insediamenti residenziali testimoniano come da qualche anno, in Europa, la sostenibilità in architettura sia sempre più applicata alla dimensione urbana e non solo al singolo edificio. Il modello di sviluppo sotteso a questa tendenza è l’Ecoquartiere una tipologia insediativa in grado di associare alle tecnologie costruttive e ai principi progettuali tipici della bioarchitettura quello dell’aggregazione sociale, contemplando in tal modo i tre principali fattori della sostenibilità: preservazione dell’ambiente, fattibilità economica e benessere sociale.

Il quartiere BedZED, Beddington Zero (fossil) Energy Development, costituisce il primo esempio di comunità Carbon Neutral realizzata.  Progettato dall'architetto Bill Dunster e dal gruppo ZEDfactory, è stato realizzato dal Peabody Trust, associazione operante nel settore dell'edilizia sociale, e nasce con l'obiettivo di esplorare le potenzialità di uno sviluppo urbano sostenibile ad alta densità a zero emissioni inquinanti e consumi energetici. Costruito su di un'area dismessa a sud di Londra, BedZED è un insediamento di 82 alloggi a conduzione mista (abitazione sociale, convenzionata e in vendita) con più di 3000mq di spazi dedicati al lavoro, servizi, commercio e usi ricreativi.

I materiali sono tutti di recupero e prodotti ad una distanza inferiore ai 35 km dal sito, così da ridurre l'impatto ambientale dovuto alle emissioni nocive dei camion. In particolare, il 60% dei mattoni è fabbricato sul posto, il legno proviene da foreste sostenibili ed il ferro da una stazione ferroviaria demolita. Sotto l'asfalto, uno strato di vecchie bottiglie frantumate garantisce il drenaggio dell'acqua piovana. Il risparmio energetico è garantito attraverso l'orientamento dell'edificio e l’involucro edilizio altamente isolato, cinque volte superiore agli standard, grandi finestre a sud caratterizzate da doppi o tripli vetri e serre solari consentono di accumulare il calore in inverno.

Il ricambio dell’aria e la sua circolazione negli ambienti sono ottenuti con un sistema di ventilazione naturale attraverso camini a vento che contraddistinguono i tetti dell’abitato. Tetti verdi aumentano l'inerzia termica dell'edificio ma anche il valore ecologico del sito e la capacità di assorbimento del carbonio. Le scelte costruttive si declinano in struttura in acciaio riciclato per gli uffici; struttura in calcestruzzo per le residenze; impiego di un numero minimo di elementi prefabbricati e di sistemi ad alta tecnologia uniti a materiali edilizi tradizionali del luogo. L'energia necessaria agli appartamenti è generata da 777 mq di pannelli fotovoltaici posti sulle pareti a sud e da una centrale termica (impianto di cogenerazione alimentato da biomasse)che brucia legno di scarto proveniente da aziende locali, ovvero dalla potatura degli alberi di Boroughs, sutton e Croydon. Un apposito sistema sul tetto, convoglia le acque piovane poi raccolte in apposite vasche e riutilizzate per lo scarico dei bagni e per innaffiare le piante.

BedZED, i cui costi di realizzazione sono davvero poco superiori rispetto a quelli di un insediamento standard, è stato progettato per essere costruito ovunque, considerando che in Inghilterra, entro il 2016, ogni nuova costruzione dovrà essere alimentata con energia rinnovabile prodotta sul posto, questa sua caratteristica diviene fondamentale. Nel quartiere, inoltre, sono molto utilizzati il car sharing ed il car pooling nonché una scooter elettrici. Anche la spesa, attraverso un sistema di distribuzione del cibo a chilometri zero, oltre a ridurre gli impatti legati al trasporti delle merci o delle persone, favorisce lo sviluppo di un sistema economico locale. (Fabiana Cambiaso - Università La Sapienza) www.zedfactory.com/zed www.bioregional.com Immagini: © 2010 Andrew Butterton; © 2010 ZEDfactory Ltd; ©2009One Planet Living; ©2008 The Independent.

Carlo Bardelli