FIERAMILANO RHO HOTELS IN DOMINIQUE PERRAULT’S TOWERS COMPLETED ON SCHEDULE AND SET TO OPEN IN JANUARY 2009
Rho-Pero, 3 ottobre 2008 – The "leaning" towers designed by Dominique Perrault which will host the hotels of Fieramilano Rho near Porta Sud have been completed right on schedule and at a pace of one floor every 15 days, thanks to 400,000 hours of labour over 20 months
Rho-Pero, 3 October 2008 – The "leaning" towers designed by Dominique Perrault which will host the hotels of Fieramilano Rho near Porta Sud have been completed right on schedule and at a pace of one floor every 15 days, thanks to 400,000 hours of labour over 20 months. The hotels will be managed by NH Hoteles and are set to open in January 2009 during Spring MACEF, the International Home Show. The 400 rooms will accommodate about 800 people.
During a press tour held this morning, the hotels were presented by Luigi Roth, president of Fondazione Fiera Milano; Leonardo Carioni, president of Sviluppo Sistema Fiera since July; their architect, Dominique Perrault; Francesco Chiabrando, president of Alberghi Fiera; the consortium responsible for the construction, composed of CMB, Marcora Costruzioni spa and Pessina Costruzioni spa; and Maximiliano Lombardi, NH Hoteles sales director for Italy.
The shiny black facades of the hotels are covered with 20,000 stoneware glass sheets fitted with cavity wall ventilation used for the first time in Europe and designed to control the heat dispersion. The hotels also stand out for their over 1000 irregularly positioned windows, heights of 72 and 65 metres and 5-degree tilt; the higher tower towards Fieramilano, the lower one towards Milan.
The 4-star hotel includes a 240 m2 floor dedicated to a fitness area and bar, six, 50 m2 suites and 25 m2 standard rooms. The rooms in the 3-star hotel have an area of 20 m2. The 3-star hotel has 250 rooms (12for disabled guests), while the 4-star hotel has 148 rooms (8 for disabled guests). The hotels share the cross-shaped lobby as well as the services floors (hall, bar, restaurants) situated on the lower levels. The parking areas and reflecting water pools are at the foot of the towers.
The hotels designed by Perrault are part of what is now considered the “architecture park” of Fieramilano, Rho, which includes the exhibition centre by Massimiliano Fuksas, the multi-storey car park by Mario Bellini, and public green spaces by Andreas Kipar. By 2010, these works will be joined by a building that will host employees of the companies belonging to the Fiera Milano Group. This consists of a single complex located near Porta Est and is formed of two 13-floor buildings a little less than 50 metres tall and covered in smoky grey windows. It will be built by Italiana Costruzioni based on a design by the 5+1 AA studio and Jean Baptiste Pietri.
“Hospitality for this exhibition centre is essential, it is complimentary to its core business”, stated Luigi Roth. “For ages we have argued that the Fiera is also communication, that the large trade arena lives off the relationships that are generated within it. That is precisely why the functions that help and support the human, relational and hospitality aspect are important, crucial. The Fair is not just a place where spaces are “sold”. Besides, it is also very important for us to stress the aesthetic, architectural and experimentation side that these towers express. They are a new sign in the territory, as is this large trade fair infrastructure, and they bring added value to our “architecture park”, which was established and is growing thanks to the idea that has always guided us: to pursue beauty and quality in our creations.”
“I would like to congratulate the people,” added Leonardo Carioni, “who accomplished the construction of these two hotel structures within the set time schedule and budget, in full compliance with the criteria behind the design by Dominique Perrault. I would also like to stress that the hotels also represent the ability of Fieramilano to relate to the broader territorial context, helping to enhance the value of the entire area the exhibition centre is located in, within the so-called “compatible” facilities of Fieramilano”.
PROJECT SPECIFICATIONS
Client: Fondazione Fiera Milano, Sviluppo Sistema Fiera
Final design and art director: Dominique Perrault
Executive design and works management: Sinesis, Pool Milano
General Contractor: CMB, Martora Costruzioni, Pessina Costruzioni
Location: Porta Sud, New Rho-Pero centre
Area of lot: 37,500
area of building: 25,000 m²
volume: 120,000 m³
tower layout: square
costs: 35 million
SCHEDULE
works began: November 2006
delivery: November 2008
hotel management (NH) entry: September 2008
DIMENSIONS
side: 25 m
height of tower leaning towards the exhibition centre: 72 m
height of tower leaning towards Milan: 65 m
vertical tilt: 5 degrees
no. of floors: 20, with two basement levels (3-star hotel); 18, with 2 basement levels (4-star hotel)
FACADE
type: ventilated (wall fitted with air cavities)
cladding: shiny black stoneware glass sheets
cladded surface area: 11,000 m²
no. of sheets: 20,000 (cut to measure in workshop)
size of sheet: 50x100 cm
no. of windows: 1,100 (irregularly positioned)
CATEGORY OF HOTELS
3-star (higher tower leaning towards the exhibition centre) / 4-star (lower tower leaning towards Milan)
ROOMS
no. of rooms in three-star hotel: 250 (including 12 for disabled guests)
no. of rooms in four-star hotel: 148 (including 8 for disabled guests)
no. of suites in four-star hotel: 6 (on 18th floor)
area of 4-star suites: 49.72 m² (1 bedroom, 1 living, 1 bathroom)
area of 3-star standard rooms: 20.03 m²
area of 4-star standard rooms: 25.50 m²
area of 4-star fitness floor (18th floor; sauna, Turkish bath, gym): 240 m²
4-star standard floor: 6 rooms
3-star standard floor: 4 rooms
total number of beds: 800
HUMAN RESOURCES EMPLOYED DURING CONSTRUCTION
carpenters and steelworkers: 40
plasterers:50
electricians and mechanical workers:50
frame-fitters and ventilated façade workers: 60
peak number of workers: 200
hours of labour: 400,000
general contractor staff: 10 people including surveyors, engineers and architects for project management and work supervision.
pace of works: about 1 floor every 15 days