In the light of the extensive changes taking place in where and how work and research are carried out, together with the move from mass production to streamlined production, the spread of new technologies, flexible working and the increasing fluidity of society and markets, business-related architecture has assumed a significant and strategic role in the shaping of cities and the transformation of the landscape.
The new Chiesi Research Centre is a part of that scenario:an initiative that finds its premise within the processes of structural expansion, organisational rationalisation and technical innovation that are leading design research to offer new levels of performance and services, that maintain the balance between speed of change and the demands of the longer term.
The position of the site, that has a high strategic value given its proximity to major infrastructural elements (the airport, motorway and high speed railway line), made it necessary to assess the character of a major access point to the city of Parma, from an architectural and town planning point of view, as an element that is indicative of the landscape of the city and of its ability to compete nationally.Hence the design aims to achieve reconciliation with a landscape dominated by infrastructural works, by means of a structure with a very urban character which is modelled on the concept of a “corporate citadel” consisting of open spaces and structural elements that differ in character both functionally and morphologically.
The concept of functional integration, introduced with the supersession of Fordist logic, translates into a planimetric arrangement founded on the compositional concepts of aggregation and connection and, at the same time, of rotation and transferral, aimed at differentiating areas by the layout of the spaces and the links between them.
The functional layout of the buildings results not only in areas expressing a distinct flavour and style, but also in an offering of integrated, interactive and all-encompassing spaces for services and quality of the environment, as well as integration with the landscape and green areas in order to guarantee a high degree of comfort and quality of the work space.
The heart of the complex is the building accommodating the research laboratories and offices, around which are arranged the buildings and spaces housing the various essential support services which can be summarised as technological (utilities and plant), functional (warehousing and stores) and organisational (security, parking and ancillary buildings).
The generous proportions of the main building are a reflection of the company that occupies it.The layout of the floor-plan came about through a process of optimisation of the work space and customisation and differentiation of the various functions without sacrificing their integration:three wings (two used for laboratories and one for offices) connected by a barycentric element (the atrium) intended to form a vertical and horizontal interconnection point as well as a meeting point containing services and areas set aside for social interaction (meeting rooms, conference room and seating and entertaining areas) conditions of work hallmarked by multiplicity, creativity, team spirit, communication and motivation.
The era of information and easy access has replaced the compartmentalisation of human activities with a “collective mentality”, that generates a need for integration, multifunctionality and intra-company relationships.The search for quality is based on the non-standardisation of spaces, of levels and the logic of traffic-flows, in an attempt to create areas on a human scale within a large-scale structure:floors with different layouts, differentiated common areas, internal pathways and piazzas, and theme-based areas.
The floor-plan of the entire building complex is based on the identification of appropriate functional modules that relate to the spatial and dimensional demands of the work and the research activities that in turn determine the differing depths of the buildings, thus defining the spans of the load-bearing structures and establishing the pattern for the cladding.
The design, in contrast to the recent trend of transitory fashions, that turn the breaking of geometric patterns into expressions of their own style, relies on the power of the elements of orderliness and rationality, heightened by the generous dimensions, expressed in the even spacing of the rigid structural framework and the modularity of the components of the building envelope.
This leads to a material differentiation also of the volumes:the light transparency of the central element is contrasted with the massive and solid appearance of the two structures set aside as laboratories, and the office building that is narrower and more adaptable due to a cladding system that seeks to maximise the amount of natural light reaching the work stations inside.
The material and chromatic properties of the elements making up the façade characterise an envelope that is not detached from the activities being carried out inside, finding in the geometric structure of the elements, in the composition of the parts and the modules, and in the different technologies an expression of its own style.
Within this logic the envelope presents an opportunity for research and specialised design, encompassing a stratification of various functions:the technical and structural themselves, the management of internal comfort, and image.
The design of the new Research Centre, in accord with the requirements of contemporary architecture, addresses the issue of energy resources in line with research that is increasingly oriented towards the use of technologies that reduce consumption and make production structures as energy-independent as possible.Through a multiplicity of solutions, from the orientation of the buildings, to the regulation of daytime lighting and direct sunlight, to the choice of low maintenance materials through to the strategy for building plant, the project pursued the twin objectives of optimising thermal exchanges through very high performance components and cladding materials for the envelope, and generating energy using passive systems to meet, in part at least, the building’s energy needs.
A sustainability not interpreted merely as a cliché but as a design aimed at the application of high technology systems and materials, the utilisation of sustainable techniques and materials, the optimisation of surfaces and volumes to limit thermal dispersion and the sensible use of transparent materials.
As with any architectural project of high complexity, the new Chiesi Centre is the result of a systematic integration of collective contributions focussed on a common goal, from the initial design phase to completion of the execution:an integrated collection of activities by different professions that brings together architectural design and engineering solutions aimed at the creation, the durability and the real sustainability of an architecture that aspires to make a contribution to a town’s urban values and to be the expression of a company’s ethical values.
