The new Leo France Headquarters designed by the Archea Associati studio fits into the complex built in the early 1940s in the Castello district of Florence that was once the headquarters of Seves, a glass-cement brick manufacturer.
The intervention stems from the desire to recover a currently disused and degraded complex by upgrading an area with great potential, in which the buildings relate not only to the outside but also to each other. The consequent effect of the intervention is to give greater decorum to the block, recovering the most valuable buildings having architectural qualities and demolishing and rebuilding those that do not have any valuable character.
The project qualifies as a mix of building replacement intended as an intervention of demolition and simultaneous reconstruction of two buildings and the recovery of the remaining main buildings.The intention of the intervention is to proceed to the full rehabilitation of the property complex in question while maintaining the production destination in place in order to transfer its business of manufacturing costume jewelry and accessories Leo France. The area in question covers about 48,980 sq. m., of which about 24,300 sq. m. are covered, and the built-up part includes multiple buildings with different characteristics and construction types.
The main access to the complex is from Via Reginaldo Giuliani, while driveway access is from Via del Palazzaccio. The entire area is completely fenced off and has an irregular shape, with mainly flat lying. It consists of nine main buildings (A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I) and external arrangements such as paving, fencing, yards and parking lots.
The new Building C basically consists of three main pavilions of different lengths and similar geometry: the section of each pavilion is extruded consistently throughout the development of the building body. From the outside, on the other hand, the three main volumes are perceived to be connected by smaller bodies of the same architectural language. Inside, the floor plan appears to be set on longitudinal and transverse axes that clearly identify the new production areas.
The design theme, on the one hand, satisfies the client’s desire to have a green and energy-saving-conscious factory and, on the other hand, allows for compliance with the aero-illuminant ratios in workplaces.
The structure includes steel pillars and floors while a wooden truss serves as a roof for the new block. In section, the main aisles feature a roof that echoes the gabled geometry typical of industrial halls, characterized by skylights with vertical windows facing north. The expulsion ducts of the Workshop and Galvanic departments are designed to limit their visual impact and encourage integration with the context while the photovoltaic panels, present on each of the three main bodies, are of the “total black” type with black frames and cells with increased efficiency. The new production activity is permeable to the outdoors thanks to the large industrial-type windows on the two short elevations. In fact, these fronts have a scan that echoes the alignment of the lintels of the ground floor and second floor windows of the adjacent Building I.
