Urban Office Campus, renovation of three buildings in Milan

Renovation of three buildings to create a new impressive and unique Urban Office Campus located within a deep urban block close to Castello Sforzesco in the city center of Milan.

The three buildings, different in architecture features, morphology, size and period of construction are arranged around a central courtyard, providing a total of 10,000sqm GLA with 3 underground parking levels.


A UNIQUE AND IMPRESSIVE BUSINESS CAMPUS

The aim of the project is the re-generation of a cluster of buildings, unique in position and conformation, capable of being functional, iconic and energy efficient (Leed Gold) to create a desirable and comfortable living and working environment that establishes a renewed and measured relationship with the surrounding urban context.

The domestic inner courtyard is designed to become a nice, intimate and quiet “secret garden” full of greenery and seating places, to be used also for events and private exhibitions. The rooftop terraces, originally in derelict conditions and not in use, are redesigned to be used for multiple purposes, providing a unique 360° view of Milano Skyline, from the Duomo to the Castello Sforzesco, to the recent iconic high-rise development in town.
The 7.600 sqm (Buildable Area) office building sits on a relevant commercial gallery directly linking the main street to a next commercial square where relevant development are currently ongoing. The purpose of the building refurbishment is focused on placemaking and creating an interesting address for possible tenants.
DESIGN DETAIL

Redevelopment of the main building overlooking via San Giovanni sul Muro, reinterprets the design and rhythm of the original facade, maintaining the alignments and chromatic tones of the adjacent buildings. A regular grid of concrete precast elements, embellished with a specific concrete design mix, houses large windows divided into three sections by thin steel profiles with thermal break. These large windows guarantee, in addition to a spectacular view towards the Castello Sforzesco on one side and the private garden on the other, excellent levels of natural lighting inside the building.

If in the building facing the street the architectural structure is declared and exhibited, the re-design of the internal building, an L-shaped body with 4 levels above ground, has opted for a different language, dissembling the existing metal exoskeleton structure and creating a precious and efficient curved glass facade. This new double glazed skin allows to dematerialize the overall volume, making the building a transparent architectural organism towards the garden and at the same time reflecting the surrounding greenery on the new glazed facades.

A third, smaller and older building, completes the articulation of the campus. The four floor building is characterized by a new shed glass roof inside the central patio which guarantees natural lighting conditions in every hour and season, thanks to a filtering curtain system managed by a series of sensors.

The three buildings are connected to across the upper and ground floor, as well as through the private internal garden, contribute with their different geometries and materiality, offering a unique environment that fits carefully into the center of Milan’s urban fabric.





Innovative Solutions and Construction Methods

The decision, shared with the client, was to retrofit the existing building structures and provide clever design solutions based on three main elements:
• the overall positive evaluation of the geometries and the structural links in relation to the required flexibility objectives;
• the faster transformation speed of buildings;
• the optimization of energy consumption against the maintenance of existing structures.

Being an extensive renovation and expansion project, the building aspects dealt with at the design level mainly concerned the new facades, built off-site, and the reinforcement and adaptation works of the existing structures.