Palazzo Lombardia in Milan, Italy by Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Article source: Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

This large public building aims through its design to achieve three explicitly stated goals: to provide office and support spaces for government departments to provide outdoor gathering places to exemplify the most advanced green practices

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

• Architects: Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP
• Project: Palazzo Lombardia
• Location: Milan, Italy

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

The tower’s emblematic presence on the skyline is explicitly complementary to the neighboring Pirelli Tower, which houses related regional government offices.

Whereas the form of Gio Ponti’s great work is singular, convex, and closed, the new tower engages it in conversation with a form that is dual, concave, and open.

The central plaza of the complex, Piazza Città di Lombardia, with its curved roof composed of transparent pillows of EFTE film, recalls Milan’s Galleria.

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

The sinuous interweaving strands of linear office space buildings, fourteen meters in width and seven to nine floors in height, that optimize efficiency and flexibility while giving to Palazzo Lombardia its distinctive form, are derived from the intersection of twenty-two circles comprising eleven identical circular rings.

Owing to their modest scale, the interweaving strands relate well to adjoining residential neighborhoods.

At each point of inflection in the curvilinear strands, a spiral stair facilitates circulation between floors, and at each point of contact between two strands, there is an entry lobby flanked by elevators and service spaces.

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

The lower floors, just above the podium, are dedicated to conference and reception rooms

The tower’s upper floors comfortably house the offices and reception rooms of the President and other senior executives of the Lombardy regional government.

Sustainability While the site is located some distance from the city’s historic center, it is remarkably well served by public transport. The project incorporates large areas of green roof on the podium and contains an array of photovoltaic panels embedded in the south-facing glass walls of the tower. Additionally, the energy required for heating in winter and cooling in summer is supplied by a geothermal heat pump system tapping the heat exchange potential of a nearby underground river.

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Climate Wall The climate wall is composed of two layers of glass separated by a one-meter-wide cavity with vertical blades that rotate to provide shade while maximizing transparency of the building envelope. The shading vanes are perforated aluminium operable fins, operated by the building management system, that rotate in groups of four or eight, depending on their location. Fine perforations allow visibility when the vanes are less than perpendicular to the layers of glass. The climate wall cavity provides a walking surface for maintenance personnel. Return air from each floor is exhausted into the return air cavity formed by the sealed layers of glass.

The ground floor of the building is enlivened with shops, restaurants, galleries, and a large auditorium. The Piazza, which is open twenty-four hours a day, has become a popular location for public events, including concerts, art and design shows, street fairs and festivals, and ice-skating.

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Image Courtesy © Pei Cobb Freed & Partners Architects LLP

Tags: Italy, Milan

Categories: Office Building, office Complex, Office space, Offices

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