Green blast. Co-working office, Milan

Global warming and climate change cause the warming trend that is most likely a result of human activities (Nasa, 2018). Since the late of 19 century, the global temperature of the Earth has raised by 0.9 oC which is mainly from the rise of carbon dioxide and other human-made emissions (ibid.). Scientists estimate that with the current warming trend, the Earth temperature can reach a critical point (2oC above). As a result, the cities will become vulnerable to the negative impacts of climate change. Reinventing C40 is a global competition that provides a wide variety of sites including Milan. The project location is found in viale Doria (54-56) street which is situated in north-eastern part of the city in 3km apart from city centre. The site is characterized by vacant place of 610 sqm which is currently used for different purposes but mostly as a car parking. Its location is accepted to be among the most strategic positions in the city in terms of accessibility since it is well connected to all transport modes. The fact, that it is in 10 minutes far from city centre, in close location from Centrale railway station hub and MM1; MM2 underground line station Loreto (300m), makes possible to reach any destination in Italy. In addition, for private transports it is in 8-9 km from A1 and A2 high way as well as presence of bike sharing stations within walking distance is important. The surrounding districts of the project site are identified as the most active and densest areas. For instance, Milan’s most significant commercial street, Corso Buenos Aires is located in neighboring street. Furthermore, the areas which are experiencing and planning promising urban transformations as the temporary Ventura Centrale Design District at Magazzini Raccordati adding a value for site a relevant consideration. According to statistics, Doria is occupied with relatively high number of young population. The71 percent of buildings are mostly for residential use with, as a rule, ground floor for different public and private services including gastronomies and stores. Analysing the urban area around the site, helped to define the strategies for piazzale Loreto which main concept was to reshape the square in a way that it will no longer be a car dominated area. Regarding the boulevard, the concept of traffic evaporation was introduced for reducing the carbon footprint and improve the urban space that is now mostly occupied by private cars. The solution was to create urban pockets where different public activities can be held and introduce more greenery for reducing noise pollution, decreasing the effect of heat island and improve the water management. Also, the green boulevard is connected by the building through the urban staircase that cut the ground floor of the building. Considering the space inside, we proposed to design a coworking space for progressive entrepreneurs. The idea was to merge the nature inside the working space by introducing the concept of green blast: the concept is to break the image of old and introduce new functions with emphasize on greenery. Also, the south and north façades were designed for achieving better energy performance and reach high indoor comfort. North façade has the pixelated brick system that represents the concept of green blast and improve the daylight indoor. Regarding the South façade, the balconies with greenary were designed for providing the seasonal shading and create unique places where coworkers can enjoy their jobs. Overall, the project was following the LEED v4 BC standard in order to reach a sustainable architecture. The analysis was performed based on following categories: land and transportation, sustainable site, water efficiency, energy and atmosphere, materials and resources and indoor environmental quality. The final results show that the building is certified as “Silver” reaching in total 52 points.