An X-Lam Social Housing Project in Via Cenni, Milan.
Rossiprodi Associati
image©Rossiprodi Associati
Background
On the outskirts of Milan, Via Cenni is a mixed use area, where traditional farmhouses rub shoulders with municipal facilities, commercial and light industrial premises and council housing. However, the area lacks a social or community focus.
This new social housing project aims to promote a sense of community through introducing a mixed development in which a diverse the housing solution provides the foundation for social interaction.
The facility includes four 9 storey towers housing 124 apartments of varying sizes, common spaces for supplementary resident services, local and urban services, outdoor and green areas for residents and a public green park with a playground and shared facilities, including laundries and DIY spaces.
image©Rossiprodi Associati
The advantages of X-Lam
The main buildings have reinforced concrete basements and horizontal and vertical raising load-bearing structures comprising glued crossed timber panels (X-Lam), with horizontal and vertical elements on the ground floor.
The thickness of load bearing walls varies from 20cm on the ground floor to 12 cm on the upper floor. Slabs span up to 6.70m - up to 8.50 m in the case of cantilevered balconies.
XLAM was chosen because of its flexibility that ensures excellent anti-seismic performances, its good thermal insulating efficiency (the whole complex has obtained an A class energy rating), superior acoustic properties, speed of construction and increased work site safety.
Sustainability was also an important factor in the choice of materials - wood can be replaced in a relatively short time by forests, which differentiates wood from other material that are essentially non renewable.
Read more about this project here
Rossiprodi Associates
Rossiprodi Associates was founded in 2006 by Fabrizio Rossi Prodi, Professor of Architectural and Urban Design at the University of Florence - Faculty of Architecture.
The company focuses mainly on social, health and education facilities, residential and social housing, public places, new materials and sustainability.
Read more about Rossiprodi Associates here