Page 213 - Beyond Decommissioning

194 Beyond Decommissioning

through existing floor voids. The architecture is purposely simple, with crisp new
cladding and minimally detailed display cases playing off the grungy concrete frame.
The converted building is now used as a museum documenting the history of the com-
pany, a dining room and conference space (Architectural Review, 2012).

6.2.2.14 Hangar Bicocca, Milan, Italy

The history of Hangar Bicocca is closely linked to that of Breda, the company that
moved it to the Bicocca district of Milan, Italy in 1903. Such renowned companies
as Pirelli, Falck, and Marelli followed Breda, so turning the area into an important
industrial center. In the new 20 ha factory, Breda manufactured railway wagons, elec-
tric, and steam locomotives, boilers, agricultural machinery and, during WWI, mili-
tary equipment.
One of the factory buildings was Pirelli Hangar Bicocca, which at the time was
divided into blocks of different types and size. The huge building called today
“Le Navate” in Italian (“The Aisles”) was constructed in the early 1960s for the
assembling and testing of transformers. The building, which has retained its orig-
2
inal dimensions to this day—9500 m with a height of about 30 m—has a “nave”
and two aisles. In the early 1980s, the historic industrial areas began to be
decommissioned. The Bicocca district was subject to a full urban redevelopment
(Fig. 6.19). The 1986 Bicocca Project led to the establishment of university build-
ings, administration centers, and private houses, as well as to the redevelopment of
the old Pirelli factory buildings. After many years of neglect, it was decided in
2004 that Pirelli Hangar Bicocca was to be converted into an exhibition space
for contemporary art (Hangar Bicocca, n.d.). Since 2004, one of the building aisles
has housed The Seven Heavenly Palaces, a piece of contemporary art by the Ger-
man artist Anselm Kiefer.

6.2.2.15 Officine Grandi Riparazioni, Turin, Italy
2
The 20,000-m redeveloped Officine Grandi Riparazioni (OGR, “Large Repairs
Workshop) opened up to the general public in September 2017. The OGRs located
in the heart of Turin, Italy, were founded in late 19th century and later nicknamed the
“cathedral” of Turin’s industrial history. The initial assumption of the redevelop-
ment, which only considered “rendering the structure secure”, evolved into a
broader and more ambitious project encompassing the multiple use of the new
OGRs (2018).
The redevelopment project has been a major step from former workshops for the
repair of trains to new laboratories of contemporary culture, innovation, and business.
Over three years of work and €100 million investment were needed to establish this
center of creativity, culture, and performance for public use: High-tech solutions,
environmental sustainability, preservation of historical values, flexibility and modu-
larity of spaces, maximum usability, and accessibility to all have been the factors
inspiring the full-scale redevelopment of the OGRs.