Preserving suspended structures with light façades (1960-1980) : architectural study and retrofitting proposals
(2023)
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- Nowadays, the energy efficiency of the existing building stock is internationally accepted as an absolutely topical issue. Energy retrofitting is strongly encouraged, surely improving the thermal performances of buildings, but often altering the historical image of our cities. In this panorama, close attention should be paid to detect and preserve not only environmental, but also cultural resources. Accounting for nearly 45% of the existing stock, the architecture of the second half of the 20th century is now regarded as the primary target - a vulnerable category in spite of its heritage value. Invasive interventions, solely focused on energy savings, are becoming increasingly common, with minor concerns about original materiality preservation. Within this context, suspended architecture is one of the most threatened - not always legally protected - building types. Suspended buildings are characterized by the brilliant and delicate combination of hanging structures and light curtain walls. This makes preservation an extremely challenging practice, particularly in light of the ever-growing demands for energy efficiency and safety. From an historical point of view, suspended architecture mainly developed in the decades 1960s-1970s. After the 1980s, cable-supported solutions for buildings were gradually abandoned and hanging architecture was almost forgotten, even by contemporary historiography. The first aim of the present thesis is knowledge production, starting to fill a recognized gap in the field of construction history. The multiple phases of suspended buildings’ development are widely retraced, from rise to fall, paying particular attention to engineering, technologies and building components. The acknowledgment of hanging architecture’s qualities constituted the scientific basis for assessing its heritage value. At the same time, the lack of shared retrofitting guide lines in modern preservation and the absence of intervention methods specifically intended for light façades, made it clear the urgent need to develop a cohesive approach, capable of integrating in a single process thermal improvement and architectural conservation. Assuming the 15-year research carried out by the TSAM laboratory of the EPFL as a starting point, the second aim of this thesis is to outline a methodological approach to preserve the cultural values of modern buildings, while meeting the main energy standards. In this sense, a multidisciplinary methodology is defined, consisting in a step-by-step process, including historical and architectural research, architectural design, heritage preservation, building physics and technology. The proposed method has been tested on three suspended buildings: the BP tower in Antwerp by L. Stynen and P. De Meyer (1961-1963); Chauderon administrative complex in Lausanne by Atelier AAA (1970-1974); the Olivetti Corporate Building in Florence by A. Galardi (1969-1972). Starting from the archival documentation and crossing multiple - and in many cases unpublished - sources, the construction history of each building is meticulously retraced. Multiple intervention scenarios are proposed and compared. Detailed redrawing, intended as a further research means, allowed to understand specific architectural solutions and building technologies. Dynamic models permitted precise simulations of energy consumptions. The obtained results are encouraging, allowing in the three cases a reduction in heating energy consumption by more than 70%, while always respecting the original materiality. In this way, the issues of architectural preservation and energy improvements - sometimes a priori opposed - are finally reconciled. It is also assumed that the technologically extreme suspended building type can constitute the operative basis for a wider scale application, encompassing more common and less challenging building types. An alternative approach to future architectural retrofitting is thus outlined, opening up towards a stimulating debate in the field and capable to better address today’s needs of society.
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Galbiati, G. (2023). Preserving suspended structures with light façades (1960-1980) : architectural study and retrofitting proposals. https://hdl.handle.net/2078.5/25526