ArchShowcase Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Outdoor Furnitures for Mc Donalds in Bordeaux, France by AliasDecember 15th, 2012 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: Alias The US fast food giant McDonald’s has chosen Alias, the historic Italian design brand, to furnish the outdoor areas of its restaurants worldwide as part of the “COME” project. Objective: to design, engineer, develop and install a specific turnkey modular furniture system. The company from Grumello del Monte has taken on this challenge with great enthusiasm, working together with the established French designer Patrick Norguet, with whom it established a highly successful relationship some time ago.
The first phase of the work will be carried out in France, with the first outdoor area already having been inaugurated in Bordeaux and a further 6 terraces installed in the north of the country. The entire project entails furnishing approximately 150 terraces and will be completed over the course of 2-3 years. The partnership with McDonald’s provides confirmation of Alias’ status as an authoritative reference point for the contract sector, thanks to its wealth of technological expertise, industrial know-how and innovative design. All this has been achieved over the course of 30 years in business and is expressed to the full in the project carried out for McDonald’s. As in all its products, Alias once again focuses strongly on the end user. The company sees design as being all about creating a balance between form and function, creating products able to communicate with users. It is thanks to this design ethic that Alias has always managed to create innovative prototypes that go beyond fashions, trends and conventions. Representing Italian production means dedicating resources to design quality, as well as product quality, with the careful development and engineering of each industrial phase, and service quality, ensuring precise delivery and installation times. For Alias, people are what really count. They invest passion, intelligence and ideas into their work and are therefore able to create products that add value to the lives of others. “Working in perfect harmony with the McDonald’s team and Patrick Norguet’s firm, we have succeeded in interpreting their ideas to the full: creating a personal, friendly and high quality outdoor space. A place where even a short break can provide an opportunity to relax and unwind. The plastic elegance and formal purity of each complement – a unique aspect of the designer’s style – are enhanced by the power and simplicity of the materials skilfully worked by Alias,” states the CEO and architect Renato Stauffacher. The result is a modular furniture system open to numerous different yet coherent configurations, where small islands of greenery alternate with windscreens, tables of different dimensions and ergonomic, comfortable seating: 18 different elements, developed by Alias thanks to its years of experience in residential and community outdoor furniture, offering strong resistance, durability and easy maintenance. Severe and highly contemporary sheet steel and cement are combined by means of expert techniques, then skilfully moulded to offer a sensation of comfort. In the seating, for example, the perforated sheet metal body which rests on the concrete base offers a gently pulsating surface which renders it immediately inviting and welcoming. Alongside the seats, with and without arms, the benches and two-person tables consist of a cast concrete base and sheet metal top. The cement surfaces have all been sanded by hand, ensuring the highest possible levels of resistance to atmospheric agents. The four and six-person tables have a steel base. The windscreens are made from tempered and layered screen-printed glass. There are also plans to build two roofs to provide shelter in the event of bad weather, outer barriers with an aluminium framework, lighting, steel ashtrays and bins with a Corian top to enhance the design, and a trio of flower pots with an attractively irregular shape. Contact Alias
Category: Furniture |