Italia and Partners designed the renovation of the Unione Industriali headquarters in Turin, giving new life to the historic building. The project involved the renovation of the facades, improving energy efficiency and solving structural problems.
Italia and Partners has successfully completed a renovation project for the Unione Industriali headquarters in Turin, giving new life to this historic building both from an aesthetic and structural point of view. The project respectfully and sensibly enhanced the facades of the building and improved the functionality and efficiency of the interior spaces.
The headquarters of the Industrial Union of Turin is located in the elegant Crocetta district, surrounded by a dense network of Art Nouveau residences. Built in 1876, the building was completely rebuilt between 1956 and 1958 by Mario Dezzutti in a modernist style, using avant-garde solutions for the time, such as glass and aluminum facades and reinforced concrete load-bearing structures with large spans of 15 meters.
The task entrusted to the Italia and Partners studio, led by Matteo Italia, was to regenerate the building according to the new functional, regulatory and energy requirements, maintaining a careful approach to the historical-architectural implications and to the original materials. The most significant and visible part of the project focused on the revisiting of the existing façade, in particular on its structure in aluminium, glass and glass block which included the stairwell and the lifts. This part of the building was in extremely critical condition due to structural deterioration and water infiltration.
Matteo Italia's work involved the complete removal of the compromised facade, replacing it with a new structure in aluminum and glass equipped with mullions, transoms and insulating double glazing. The new facade respectfully fits into the existing context, maintaining the same rhythm as the original facade so as not to alter the volumetric relationships with the preserved parts. However, the new solution accentuates and emphasizes the verticality of the building, giving greater momentum and overall elegance. The intervention also had a significant impact on the building's performance, definitively solving the problems of heat dispersion and water infiltration.
The interior of the building has also undergone a major renovation. The hall, the meeting rooms and the boardroom, which are the most prestigious and representative spaces, have been studied and reinterpreted with particular attention, organizing their renewal around a single and coherent formal language.
In the hall, the original floors have been preserved and refreshed, while the counter and cabinets have been covered with panels in Canaletto walnut and lacquered black and blue Fenix slabs. Thanks to the transparency of the new facades, the meeting rooms enjoy greater brightness and offer a panoramic view of the city. The floors of the meeting rooms have been renovated with tiles that create the calacatta oro marble effect, with the exception of the boardroom, which is distinguished by a large tapestry, an elegant herringbone parquet and a matt black lacquered and covered wall in blue velvet.
At the center of the boardroom stands an imposing central table measuring over 7 meters in Canaletto walnut and metal, custom-made by the Italia and Partners studio with a dry and refined style.
The renovation of the building also involved the common areas, such as the long corridors that characterize the floor plan, the stairwells, corridors and bathrooms. Each environment has been subject to specific aesthetic and functional improvements and redefinitions. The beautiful original mosaics present on the stairs and in the elevator landings have been preserved and enhanced with the introduction of LED veils that improve their readability. Likewise, the elegant boiserie that frames the stairs and connecting spaces has been recovered.
A particularly developed theme in the project was that of the quality of light in all the rooms, obtained through a precise balance between natural and artificial light, with the insertion of retractable spotlights in the black grooves created in the ceilings. This distinctive element is a recognizable signature in all the works of Italia and Partners.
The overall effect is that of an intervention of great balance and formal sensitivity, which manages both to satisfy the new technical and performance requirements, respecting the architectural importance of the historic building, and to emphasize the volumes and aesthetics, making it current with the introduction of small but significant contemporary elements conceived to measure. As stated by the designer: "We have developed a project structured around multiple actions aimed at strengthening the presence of the building in the building context of Turin, modernizing and enhancing the facades with tailor-made interventions, in compliance with the original project".
project info
Place: Torino
Year: 2021
Type: Competition – winning project
Client: Turin Industrial Union
Area 3060 SQM
Project: arch. Matteo Italy – Italy and Partners
Team: arch. Matteo Italy, arch. Vincenzo Italy, arch. Carolina De Lucia, Arch. Emilio Pantò, arch. Camila Chaverra, Arch. Gisele Chauvet.
Photo credit: Federico Moschietto
Construction supervision: arch. Matthew Italy
Structural Project: Mirko De Viti
Construction company: ICZ SPA INTERCONSTRUCTION GROUP
facades: FREA&FREA SRL
