New Mozzanica production HQ and offices in Osnago

The transformation of a production site into a large multifunctional complex is a project by Alessandro Villa Studio for the new headquarters of Mozzanica in Osnago (Lecco), a Lombardy-based company specialised in fire-fighting solutions. The project involved not just the expansion and reorganisation of spaces with three main areas (offices, production and a large training area, with courses on fire safety and fire prevention systems), but also the expansion of existing office spaces and of the ground floor, now extended to the upper floor warehouse, and the construction of an extension onto the main factory. In addition, the generous pitch between pillars and the considerable height of the building enabled a new structure to be built inside the original industrial building, with a new facade opposite the production area.


“On the ground floor, all the areas dedicated to visitors are designed as fluid, communicating spaces which can be easily transformed for special events. Windows and mobile partitions allow natural light to reach even those spaces farthest away from windows, like the full-height atrium of the main staircase, where all routes converge, and which is overlooked by several offices on the first floor”, explains the architect, Alessandro Villa. The materials and colours were chosen to echo the site’s original industrial building, with some stark contrasts.


“For the wall coverings of the entrance, auditorium and large, full-height atrium, we chose the large porcelain stoneware slabs of the Grande Stone Look Ceppo di Gré Grey collection by Marazzi, which are just 6 mm thick, to give the interior space an architectural feel, as if the walls were the facade of a building with carefully designed joints. We opted for this solution to convey a sense of durability typically attributed to architectural structures, and to view collective and transition like an internal piazza.The choice of Ceppo di Gré as a finish is linked to the Lombard tradition of using this particular look, known also as “Milanese concrete”, on building facades.


Nevertheless, the Ceppo effect enhances one’s perception of the surfaces and at the same time sits well with the industrial-type floors in polished concrete”, the designer explains. Offering excellent technical performances, the Grande Stone Look Ceppo di Gré collection by Marazzi, also available in the variants Gris du Gent, Granito Black and Pietra di Vals, is suitable for many different applications and custom projects in residential and commercial spaces.
The chromatic energy of the Eclettica collection of large size, slimline slabs meanwhile dominates bathroom spaces, where the original Purple colour alternates with the innovative Diamond 3D structure.


Photos: Maurizio Montagna