projects | Viabizzuno progettiamo la luce

the renovated headquarters of nomisma, the economic research institute, opens in a bologna senatorial palace, palazzo davia bargellini. the private research institute has had its headquarters on the main floor of the building since the eighties but recently the company commissioned a project to design the interiors of the new offices located on the fifth and sixth floors of the prestigious building which was to be refurbished. the performa a + u, designers' deliberations covered the design of the site, taking into account the important historical context and the client's requirement to produce a research observatory, in which an interdisciplinary approach, teamwork, monitoring and research and analysis of economic phenomena would also be reflected in the architecture of the interiors. the design solution was to opt for an open plan concept on both floors, in response to the quality of the building and the listed building constraints and aimed at maintaining an overall sense of transparency and unity, even though the programme entailed the creation of different areas. on the sixth and top floor, the great hall, roofed with timber trusses, is defined by transparent shapes that separate the offices acoustically but not visually, the only exception to the free flow of open space, to meet the need for confidentiality in the two meeting rooms and area managers' offices. the dimensions of the room mean that the workstations for researchers are concentrated in clusters of 4 or 6, together with some service areas and visitor reception areas. on the fifth floor, beyond the secretarial area, the space features full height trusses, with the principal rafters right down to the floor. these recurring structural elements have limited the degree of freedom in utilising the space and in designing the internal layout; the linked workstations, like the shelving, extend at right angles to the timber trusses, while the store rooms and meeting rooms are accommodated under the long sloping roof of the attic. studio performa a+u's aim to give sophisticated architectural dignity to the spaces, added to the structural , spatial, technical and regulatory constraints, necessitated a lighting design using made to measure light fittings, designed and made by Viabizzuno. a special 3,800 x 1,380mm rectangular suspension system, in black anodised aluminium, made from a combination of square tube and c2 fittings, concentrates its direct light on the desks from two sides, while at the other ends is a specially designed swivelling c2 system with adjustable beams to be directed onto workstations or the shelving behind. functionality, modularity and flexibility are the hallmarks of this light fitting, suspended from the roof decking using a special, made to measure, attachment plate. to ensure that structure, services and operational layout are clearly integrated, power and data cables are run in trunking alongside one of the sets of roof crown beams, making use of the regularly spaced trusses for the associated branches, running down the pilasters inside special twin 100mm c10 metal profiles, with side switch panels (which also control the automated opening windows) and going on to serve the backbone distribution for each cluster. in the meeting rooms and management offices, the linear, black anodised c1 system, consisting of 50W dichroic kits, is attached to the sound-absorbent materials. finally, to highlight the material quality of the pilasters by using a grazing light effect, the fitting chosen was the polished stainless 75W halogen cubo medium, with wall fixing plate.