Brief

The complex was built as part of Forlì’s Technological Aeronautical Hub, in an area near the airport and close to structures already present and active in the field of training and development in aeronautical technologies.

The project envisaged the construction of an industrial style building on two floors with a prefabricated structure (in addition to the urbanisation works and external arrangements), as well as the primary access from the road. On the basis of an agreement between the Emilia Romagna Region, the University of Bologna and the local authorities concerned, the two-storey building will house the laboratories of “C.I.R.I. Aeronautica”, characterised by industrial research programmes in fluid dynamics, mechanics and technologies applied to aeronautics, as well as the offices of the “C.I.R.I. ICT”, aimed at developing information and communication technologies.

Project challenge

The project envisaged the construction of a structure with maximum flexibility of use over time, in order to allow for different forms of use given the extreme variability of the subjects being studied and researched. Therefore, a building has been constructed that ensures that the layout of the existing spaces and/or their use can be changed quickly and with the least amount of effort.

Solution

The project, in addition to the road and urbanisation works, included the construction of a building for the Technopolo complex, with a total surface area of approximately 1,050 m2, consisting of a two-storey building above ground. The building was built with prefabricated reinforced concrete structures, with a central building (housing the research laboratories and the researchers’ offices, the distribution areas and the toilets) and with lighting provided both by windows arranged in a modular manner on the building’s south and north facades and roof lights for the first floor. The walk-on roof itself provides access to the air treatment units (which are not in view, remaining hidden by portions of the cladding panels overhanging the roof plane). The central and lateral bodies are staggered to confer “movement” to the facades and to protect the entrances.

A metal cladding made of coated undulated aluminium sheeting has been installed on the external facades of the Tecnopolo complex, which, in addition to its purely architectural function of referencing the roofing materials of last century’s hangars, creates a ventilated wall. On the main south-facing side of the building, a sunshade system was installed to protect the windows, using aluminium fins on a steel structure resting on the ground and attached to the wall of the building.

Achieved results

The Forlì-Cesena Technopolo Complex is home to the laboratories of the 3 Interdepartmental Industrial Research Centres of the University of Bologna, which are part of the Advanced Technology Network of the Emilia-Romagna Region, specialising in ICT, agri-food and aerospace technologies respectively. The Tecnopolo is the gateway to the regional innovation ecosystem and, through it, companies can take advantage of a wide range of specialised services ranging from initial orientation to the analysis of technological needs, coaching on financial instruments aimed at innovation, open innovation projects and the organisation of specialist events.

The experience of NIER Ingegneria’s technicians in safety coordination for the Forlì-Cesena Technopole further enriches the range of skills made available to clients for the activities in question, covering cases of complex architectural projects characterised by the need for innovation, functionality and speed of execution.