A NEW FACE FOR AN HISTORICAL COMPANY
The aim of the project is the redevelopment and rationalization of an industrial building close to Novara.
There are two main themes:
- The external covering, proposed in two solutions: “Skin” and “Wings”.
- A new internal configuration
Skin
It represents a conservative proposal with a strong coherence with the existing building, but able to promote a formal result of great value and communicative impact.
From a bioclimatic point of view, the building is well oriented, facing south-west the main view and ensuring good lighting for the interior.
The project intends to align the current building, which is characterized by different textures and languages, under a unitary design.
The elimination of the pitched roof and the added of the external spaces reveal a rigorous composition, cohesive with the existing building.
An insulating layer in wood fiber is covered in white plaster, while large brass panels in golden surface frames the window openings. They give rhythm to the entire façade by drawing shadows on the elevations.
Wings
A bolder proposal which seeks a new dialogue with the context through the insertion of a second facade.
Wings generate a filter space between the landscape and the existing building, while huge glass balconies connect the offices with the external structure.
Finally, the flat roof is redesigned with a careful composition of shapes and volumes and become a space for outdoor events.
The wings are created through the development of a vertical structure with steel uprights and crosspieces, on which are applied fixed and adjustable wooden slats. These combine to regulate natural lighting, shielding the building in the hottest months.
Interior
The reorganization of the internal spaces is the same for both of the previously described solutions. This provides for a radical redistribution of functions inside, while preserving the load-bearing framework and the stair-lift core.
The systems used are advanced: the management of the building is entrusted to the Controlled Mechanical Ventilation with heat recovery, which takes the internal air and introduces fresh air from the outside.
The green project, by “Olos Atelier”, is an integral part of the restoration project. The choice of vegetation is based on the desire to give to the open spaces a natural and scenographic aspect both from a chromatic and aromatic point of view. All selected species require low maintenance.
Year: 2021
Client: Private
Status: competition of ideas
Location: Novara