Login
Registered users
The reuse project has transformed the spaces inside two decommissioned industrial warehouses into five modern apartments
The project is located in the Darsena district of Ravenna, an area now filled with abandoned buildings, once home to decommissioned industrial activities connected to the port. These spaces, like the one involved in the intervention by Stefano Focaccia, represent an opportunity for urban redevelopment and the adaptive reuse of fascinating industrial architecture
The project site covered an area of 1,122 m², where two warehouses, built in the 1950s, once housed a mechanical workshop that ceased operations in 2012.
The intervention involved renovating and reducing the overall volume of the existing structures while changing their use to residential, transforming the decommissioned warehouses into five loft-style apartments. The goal was to alter the original industrial architecture as little as possible, introducing metal and wooden mezzanines inside the large volumes.
In one of the two buildings, which now accommodates one of the five lofts, the renovation included structural reinforcement of the foundations, the reinforced concrete frame, and the brick roof. Due to the deteriorated condition of the supporting structure, the second warehouse underwent partial demolition and reconstruction, creating four additional residential units.
Special attention was given to the choice of facade materials, aiming to retain as much of the original exposed brickwork as possible. This required internal insulation, achieved by adding cavity walls with EPS insulation. The exterior facades were cleaned using hydro-washing and then protected with a lime-based whitewash.
A key focus of the project was energy efficiency, aiming to achieve an A4 energy rating. This was accomplished through wall and roof insulation and the use of renewable energy generated by photovoltaic panels installed on the roof. These panels power heat pumps and underfloor radiant heating systems. No natural gas is used in the apartments.
>>> Discover also Casa PC, designed by Nuovostudio Architettura e Territorio, in Marina di Ravenna
Location: Ravenna, Italy
Completion: 2023
Architect and Project Director: Stefano Focaccia Architetti
Main Contractor: Edilmax
Consultants
Structural: ing. Bruno Piemontese
Mechanical: ing. Simone Riminucci
Photography by Angelo Ciccolo, courtesy of Stefano Focaccia Architetti
