VERGERO OFFICE ESTATE

Architecture
Competition
Venaria Reale, 2021

The Vergero Group is made up of several companies that share the same ideal of a more ethical and sustainable future.

The new headquarters of the Group brings these companies together under one roof: a glass roof conceived as a large window to the future, which not only offers a view of the city of Turin, but also captures sunlight providing clean energy to the offices.

The new building, enclosed in a solid, dynamic and modern volume, becomes the Group's manifesto of innovation and sustainability, embodying its mission through the use of materials that give new life to waste elements, such as the bricks of the facade made with marble dust. The same dynamic and innovative qualities are present in the interiors, created as a continuous succession of spaces to encourage collaboration and creativity.

The new headquarters does not only look to the future, but also to the context in which it is located: the landscape elements of Venaria Reale and the La Mandria Park are reinterpreted in a contemporary key to create an industrial complex that is recognizable from the motorway and surrounded by greenery.

The office building occupies the central position of the masterplan, a junction between the logistics area, the entrance square and the industrial plant.

The building presents itself as a dynamic and modern shape, modeled to meet the needs of the context and to express the strong presence of the Vergero Group in the area.

The building, with a long and narrow rectangular shape, has the main front to the highway to create a strong image impact along the road axis. On the side of the entrance square, on the other hand, it has a low elevation elevation that welcomes the visitor.

The facade of the building is composed of a system of slats designed to create a strong dynamic impact when the building is perceived at high speed. Along the highway, from a distance, the volume appears solid and begins to show itself more open as the distance between the observer and the building decreases, until it becomes completely transparent when viewed from the front.

The building overlooks the entrance square with a full-height lobby visible from Corso Cuneo. A large circular window, containing the Group's logo, opens onto the lobby and is visible both from the highway and from the entrance square.

Work in the park

The starting point of the project is the creation of dense vegetation that expresses local biodiversity and connects to the greenery present near the motorway junction.

The presence of vegetation creates a high environmental quality that contributes to the well-being of employees. The trees, chosen from among the local tree species, play an important role in purifying the air from pollutants, in protecting from the noise of the nearby motorway and in ensuring the shading of internal paths in the summer months.

Three clear geometric elements, inspired by the Reggia di Venaria and the La Mandria park, are obtained in the landscape by subtraction from the greenery. They are the square of the logistics area, the trapezoid of the entrance square and the green perspective wings that give the complex a dynamic view from the highway.

The entrance square functions as a long perspective view that connects the building with the offices at the entrance on Corso Cuneo. It is designed as a meeting place where tall trees create a shady path. In the square there are outdoor car parks built on green surfaces that not only limit the heat island effect, but also help to create a more welcoming image for the visitor.

The logistics area, a concrete square that partially reuses the existing flooring of the ecological island, is hidden from view from Corso Cuneo and the entrance square through a perimeter grid with climbing plants.

The interior spaces, with a modern and elegant character, are developed as a succession of descending floors under the glass roof, an element that embraces and welcomes the different realities of the Group.

Large terraces host the most dynamic and flexible workspaces. The terraces aim to create interactions and collaborations between the various components of the Group.

More reserved and calm work spaces, for the management team and the functions that require greater acoustic insulation, overlook the terraces, maintaining a visual connection with them.

The topography of the offices is visible from the entrance hall, conveying a sense of transparency and sharing. A scenic staircase winds through the different levels of the building, enticing employees and visitors to "climb" the building. This staircase connects the two internal green lungs: the entrance hall and the hanging garden.

The section of the building allows you to havean excellent supply of natural light inside the work spaces, while offering views of Turin.

The internal appearance of the building changes according to the weather and the sun: a canopy controlled by sensors opens and closes as the light conditions of the sky change, shielding the workstations from excessive amounts of sunlight.

In the offices, the use of materials that convey a sense of warmth and comfort has been favored. The floors are made of wood, while the partitions are made of glass. The functional modules between the offices are covered with recycled terrazzo panels, to underline the ambition of the Vergero Group in being a leader in sustainability and circular economy also within the work spaces.

A flexible space

The first floor above ground houses the functions of representation and those of relaxation for the employees. It is conceived as a succession of spaces that can be joined or separated according to various needs: conferences, institutional meetings, training courses and events organized by Gruppo Vergero for guests and employees.

The organization of the work spaces on the upper floors is designed to be flexible and modular, adapting to present and future needs.

The offices are grouped by floor according to the different companies of the Vergero Group. Within each grouping, then, the offices are organized into functional bands: the workstations that do not require particular soundproofing solutions are placed on the terraces while those that require them are grouped in rooms separated by glass walls that can be opened. The meeting rooms and service areas, such as printers and archives, are located in the middle.

On the top level there are the meeting room and the executive accommodation, connected by the roof garden. This space is designed as an oasis of tranquility and peace where employees can relax in breaks, enjoying the best view of the surrounding landscapes.

A lightweight structure

The structure of the building makes extensive use of wood, a circular material that allows a high level of prefabrication, limiting construction costs and times. Wood is a light material that allows the use of shallow foundations in the band of the HS corridor.

The modularity of the wooden structure makes it possible to foresee any future extensions of the building towards the industrial site and to be easily disassembled in the future to re-use the elements.

The elevation structure is made up of wooden pillars. The floors are made of Xlam wooden panels, supported by glulam beams. The roof structure is also made of laminated wood beams.

The only parts of the non-wooden structure are the foundations, basement and stair / elevator blocks, made of reinforced concrete.

This structural solution takes advantage of the advantages of both materials: the lightness of the wood combined with the stair / elevator blocks in reinforced concrete to increase the rigidity of the entire structure.

Sustainability

The building works as a smart system to ensure the best comfort for the occupants, achieving the objectives of a nearly zero energy building, according to the LEED certification protocol.

The building produces clean energy thanks to the transparent photovoltaic glass on the roof.

This innovative transparent material produces photovoltaic energy, while letting sunlight through and blocking ultraviolet rays, which are responsible for overheating indoor environments.

Thermal comfort is achieved through a floor heating and cooling system, connected to heat pumps with geothermal probes.

An intelligent ventilation system that combines natural ventilation and mechanical ceiling ventilation guarantees the quality of the air in the workplace.

The high-performance casing isolates from outside noise, while internal acoustic comfort is achieved through the use of acoustic ceilings and walls in the workplace.

Natural light plays an important role in the project: the presence of large windows and the distribution of the main functions on the exposed fronts guarantee correct natural lighting, essential for psycho-physical well-being; a system of sails filters sunlight into the rooms, creating diffused and indirect lighting.

Recycled and recyclable materials

The building makes extensive use of recycled and recyclable materials.

The insulating material of the casing is made of recycled PET, made with polyethylene fibers derived from the recycling of plastic bottles. It is a recycled and in turn recyclable product that consumes little energy in the production phase and requires the use of little "new" material for its realization.

The façade is covered with a white facing brick made with s powdercarto of the processing of Carrara marble. The brick is made by compression and does not require firing in the furnace, eliminating any polluting emissions during production.

The ground floor floor and some surfaces of the reception rooms are covered in terrazzo made with scraps from marble processing.

The use of these materials in the new headquarters becomes the business card of the Group and best expresses the ideals of sustainability and innovation of which Gruppo Vergero is a leader.