La Manufacture | MetroOffice

Lying amidst the Tuscan hills and arranged in rigorous and elegant volumes that interpret the surrounding natural topography, La Manufacture is the new production facility for the French maison Celine in Italy, recently completed in the town of Radda in Chianti, in the province of Siena. For their new manufacturing facility

in Radda, dedicated to the production of leather goods, the company appointed MetroOffice Architetti (project management by Interprofessionale) to design 5,200-square meter building to accommodate the newly hired 250 local artisans.

A building characterized by high-quality standards and relatively low construction costs: this is what MetroOffice offers with the project for La Manufacture. The identity of the French maison is interpreted through an essential design and extreme attention to the environmental qualities of the territory the building 

is immersed in. Large windows frame the countryside and take advantage of the natural light: La Manufacture promotes the idea of the workplace as a place of beauty.

Embracing the landscape and opening up views to the hills of Chianti, MetroOffice Architetti created a unique working environment that benefits all employees.
A unique production environment that lies in a high-quality landscape, among beautiful vineyards and small rural villages. 

The new facility is built on the site of a former, dismissed industrial plant, thus limiting new constructed area and enhancing a dialogue with the surrounding plots.

The building benefits from its location and interprets the topography of the land on which it lies. The main volume of La Manufacture follows a south-east alignment, then taking a 90-degree turn, thus benefitting the most in its visual relationship with the cultivated fields and taking advantage of natural lighting.

Made of concrete, steel, glass, and polycarbonate honeycomb panels, the volume appears to be lifted from the ground. At the lower level it accommodates a parking area (about 4,000 square meters). Above is the manufacturing area (3,000 square meters) that benefits from the most beautiful views to the landscape, and the storage (1,000 square meters), screened by the polycarbonate. While the work area is characterized by its direct visual relationship with the Tuscan countryside, the raised portion of the building to the back accommodates the offices and service areas: its 1,200 square meters, distributed over three floors, are directly connected to the production area.

Transparency, obtained through the combination of glass walls and suspended gray glass brick diaphragms facing south towards the valley, is reminiscent of all the symbolic value of the great works of architecture of the contemporary age. The large glass brick screen regulates the amount of light penetrating into the manufacturing area. MetroOffice designed it with a slight curvature that progressively distances
it from the regular glazed envelope. The reason behind this choice is to allow for greater shading of the interior spaces, where needed, and, at the same time, it expresses a careful sensitivity to the shape of the surrounding hills. La Manufacture presents itself with a distinctive and unique identity. 

Manufacturing facilities are more and more often becoming laboratories for the identity of luxury brands and Celine’s presence in Radda in Chianti seems to confirm the existence of a privileged connection between this region in Italy and international haute couture. Along with Fendi (their future headquarters will be in Bagno a Ripoli, Florence), Dior and Gucci (in Scandicci, Florence), and Prada (in Lavanella, Arezzo), Celine confirms that Tuscany is a preferred destination for luxury production, also due to the high professionalism of local craftsmen and artisans.

With the project for La Manufacture for Celine in Radda in Chianti MetroOffice aims to set new standards for factories located outside of industrial areas and in contexts characterized by high environmental value. Here they develop a search for quality, beauty and well-being, a new dialogue with the territory and the environment, and new opportunities for architectural experimentation.

Architect

MetroOffice Architetti

Management and site construction supervision

Interprofessionale
(Cristina Matteucci and Stefano Rossini)

Engineering

Politecnica (structural project for reinforced concrete)
Studio Ballardini (structural project review, structural project for glass brick facade and roof, assistance to the contractor for the execution
Leonardo Catarzi, L2i Engineering and Consulting (site construction supervision for structures)
Politecnica (mechanical engineering project)
Luigi Berti, L2i Engineering and Consulting (site construction supervision for mechanical systems)

Paolo Fariselli and Nicola Villani (mechanical project review for Ing. Ferrari)

Contractor

Ing. Ferrari (general contractor) www.ingferrari.it

Suppliers

Glass brick: Bormioli Luigi

Size

Site: 8.900 mq
Covered area: 4.400 mq
Indoor parking: 4.000 mq Manufacturing: 3.200 mq
Storage: 725 mq
Canteen and communal areas: 1.000 mq Offices: 400 mq

Photographers
Marco Cappelletti
Margherita Caldi Inchingolo

Press office
Image MEDIA AGENCY
www.image-web.org