#Comfort Building well-being Today living comfort is achieved through the combination of various factors that are coming into architectural design in an integrated way to meet the conditions of "perfect wellbeing", which today contribute to the pursuit of quality of life.

The MADE expo Outlook takes stock through the voice of experts and international projects and gives the appointment at MADE expo at the fair in Milan Rho - from 8 to 11 March 2017 - for discussions and debates, opening a window of news and of international innovations. Air quality, sound-proofing, the availability and intensity of natural light, appropriate insulation and energy efficiency: these are the main factors that contribute towards a healthy and comfortable home or public building.

The use of next-generation electric, plumbing and HVAC systems, along with eco-friendly construction techniques, including green roofs and walls, and the latest smart and responsive technologies, all combine to enable inhabitants and users to carry out the activities that buildings weredesigned for in conditions of ideal comfort.

The level of well-being afforded by homes in particular is on a par with the furniture and décor, and all play a role in personalising and constructing a residential space capable of meeting the unique needs and demands of increasingly “active” and well-informed people seeking the best possible quality of life – as underline the MADE expo Outlook

Intangible aspects such as indoor heat regulation and abundant natural light contribute every bit as much as tangible physical elements towards turning buildings and homes into pleasant surroundings, and certain construction technologies seamlessly blend these two dimensions.

The south-facing thermal façade of the Plein Soleil residential apartment building designed by RH+ Architecture in Paris, for example, exploits its exposure to sunshine but also gives the apartments a private outdoor loggia that enhances the

sense of cosiness and allows tenants to customise the layout.

The loggia is a “buffer space” enclosed by sliding glass panes that can be opened or closed according to the temperature outside. In the winter months, heat is kept indoors and cold air does not infiltrate; the apartments receive fresh air that is pre-

heated by a forced ventilation system that allows for significant energy savings throughout the whole year.

The loggias provide living rooms and bedrooms with balconies and terraces that can be used as patio areas and winter gardens, becoming an extension of the living room tailored to suit the season and the occasion; these spaces can be furnished as much or as little as the tenant’s lifestyle calls for.

Shade and privacy are ensured by the sliding glass bays, which have screens in the bedrooms but clear glass in the living rooms. MADE expo provides an extensive overview of the latest industry offerings in terms of innovation, products and design concepts in the pursuit of living comfort that drives mental and physical well-being to a new level, starting with novel uses of space.Crucial factors in the design process include not only adopting sturdy and compliant construction systems but also, most importantly, gauging how the building will feel. Along with a welcoming atmosphere, a number of requirements also need to be satisfied to ensure that the indoor environment puts both the body and mind at ease. M.A.D.E. IN ITALY, MADE FOR YOU Comfort and outdoors. Dining under the stars thanks bioclimatic pergolas

Comfort also means choosing the right protection system against direct UV radiation. Awnings are more often than not used to keep out sunlight or, at best, to protect homes from prying eyes. But in Mediterranean countries, the fact is that sun screens allow building systems to “operate” efficiently and maintain the highest standard of thermal comfort for occupants.

The “La Stanza Del Sole”, or Sun Room, created by Italian manufacturers Gibus, is an outdoor environment in which to enjoy everyday life in the open air, in the place of our nearest and dearest. The “Stanza del Sole” concept is a safe and relaxing outside space brimming with colour, light and life. Choosing a “Stanza del Sole” means treating an outdoor space like an extension of the home and creating a haven that can be used in absolute freedom all year long.

A prime example is the Roji Japan Fusion Restaurant, in Nola, a town near Naples. Three Med Twist pergolas by Gibus include Skate glass doors and 13.Qu lateral closures. The covered space is far greater than the sum of its parts. Without the bioclimatic pergolas that make up most of the restaurant, the space would not have been large enough to comfortably accommodate their activities.

“What’s really special about the interiors is that the restaurant is actually comprised of Gibus awnings. The biggest decision was to opt for the bioclimatic pergola, and all the rest just fell into place around it”, explain architects Andreana De Risi and Sabato Orlando. The installation was completed in no time at all. “The building itself was tiny, but with this solution we created a 12 by 7 square metre dining room, including air conditioning to keep diners comfortable all day regardless of the season.

The product is amazingly versatile: suffice it to say that it blended seamlessly with all the other materials that were used. Our plans called for the restaurant to have a COR-TEN steel main door, with the Med Twist awnings in the same colour to ensure continuity and become the ideal structure to house the restaurant. Stylistically and visually, the restaurant’s furnishings and interiors are high-impact, especially the solid oak sun screens covering a part of the glazed space, which tilt 45 degrees to ensure privacy. The delightful “dining under the stars’ experience is yet another architectural masterpiece of innovation and design.

It is the interplay between the various factors defining people’s “surroundings” and their the mental and physical balance that architects, designers and planners explore in performing their duty – and fulfilling their social responsibility – to create spaces and environments that are both enjoyable and fit the function for which they were created.

In this day and age, holistic well-being – the mind/body connection – has become a contemporary obsession – as MADE expo Outlook highlights - reflecting an attitude that cuts across every aspect of our everyday lives, be it education, work or leisure. It is also a goal we strive to achieve through behaviours, lifestyle choices and consumption styles.

In many countries, especially in Northern Europe, public housing has long sought to meet this widespread need and to encourage it particularly among children. The Frederiksbjerg School - designed in the Danish city of Aarhus by Henning Larsen Architects - is the country’s first school to comply with the demands of the Danish

school reform of 2013, which focusses on learning through movement and sensation as well as on an attitude of openness and community. In order to create ad adaptable and sentient learning environment the interiors offers students a wide variety of spaces featuring different degrees of light and materiality to stimulate both physical

and cognitive activities.

The school complex is constructed around a large shared centre-room divided into 40 areas where different learning activities are encouraged through movement and play. Each area is specifically designed to cater to students of different age groups and levels of understanding. The construction also includes smaller niches offering quiet space for individual study.

The rooftop, spacious terraces and outdoor teaching facilities are designed

as a natural extension of the surrounding cityscape and feature playgrounds as well as seating and furnishings suitable for holding workshops, relaxing and being used by the public outside of school opening hours. The school thus acts as a gathering point for the social fabric of the entire neighbourhood. As further evidence of the school’s relationship with the city, the façade of the building is largely made out of recycled bricks from old buildings in the area, thus emphasising the concept of environmental and economic sustainability. For MADE expo, well-being is a construct that calls for a holistic approach and comfort equates to aesthetic consistency and harmony with the existing environment through colour and matter. Colour is vital to defining structure and space, enabling effortless orientation, and communicating interior elements and cladding. “Colour design” entails factoring in countless aspects touching on history, psychology, sociology, aesthetics and anthropology. Colour affects behaviour and produces stimuli that interact with how surroundings, distances and shapes are perceived. Colour is light. Light and colour can be brought together to emphasise this effect, or sundered to strike a balance or cancel each other out.

M.A.D.E. IN ITALY, MADE FOR YOU

Comfort as aesthetic consistency and harmony with the existing environment. Thanks to colour and matter

An elegant early 20th century Roman residence was recently given an energy retrofit and refurbishment that enhanced its structure and finishes, delivering an aesthetic and comfort level consistent with modern living. The interiors of this exclusive private dwelling were treated with Oikos solutions primarily in white with a number of different effects. Elsewhere surfaces have a veined

texture, while the corridors feature a matte wall enamel that is both stunningly sophisticated and technically high-performance. The harmonious result of the overall renovation is an example of how interactions between form, light and matter can bring out the very best in projects, whatever the age of the property, and emphasise its aesthetic and functional coherence. “Comfort is when a space produces positive feelings. People feel comfortable when their gaze lands on pleasing dimensions, spaces and colours. In short: where there is harmony and proportion,” explains architect Valerio Camerini, from Studio Disegnocostruzioni. “We wanted to put an architectural stamp on the project through the use of colour and give a contemporary interpretation to the materials typically used in Roman architecture. Our goal was to seek balance by weaving together the past and the present.”

That balance was thoughtfully achieved by respecting and restoring the existing architecture and using traditional Roman building materials such as travertine and exposed brick feature walls. However, the plan also included next-generation furnishings, fixtures and HVAC systems. This two-pronged approach was clearly visible in the choice of materials used to clad the façades and coat indoor surfaces. The clean lines of the architectural style were retained, while each individual space was given the perfect atmosphere in terms of its aesthetic appeal, colour and light.

In the field of energy efficient buildings, experimentation and research into materials, construction techniques and HVAC go hand in hand with efforts to safeguard the planet and study impacts on the ecosystem surrounding us. Excitement is being generated by the revolutionary new Solar Roof that integrates photovoltaic panels into its design, which Elon Musk, the producer of Tesla electric cars, is about to market.

In the visionary businessman’s innovative approach, bulky solar panels will no longer be laid over an existing roof, often compromising the design and architectural composition of buildings as they do today, but the tiles themselves will incorporate the solar panels, resembling a traditional roof. This translates into smart roofs capable of converting sunlight into clean, renewable energy that will then be channelled into storage systems like the Powerwall battery, and used to meet the home’s energy needs.

In such a scenario outlines by MADE expo Outlook, context-sensitive roofs become a crucial design solution in the pursuit of optimal comfort, making buildings just as responsive to changing external conditions as living organisms.

The Al Bahar Towers - designed by the international architecture office AHR Architects - employ an advanced shading system. The 25-storey towers, built to host the Abu Dhabi Investment Council Headquarters, feature a façade of perforated hexagons that act like a second skin. The triangular fibreglass elements are programmed to open or close in response to the movement of the sun, thanks to the integration of form-finding software that operates the cladding completely automatically.

As the sun goes down and its glare diminishes, the triangles turn away from the sun’s path and the sun sensor automatically controls their movement and the façade goes into “sun-set” mode. These giant shading devices drastically reduce the building’s reliance on air conditioners and minimises the use of artificial light, effectively exploiting the abundance of natural light also as a result of the complex cylindrical shape of the towers and the translucent glass façade that offers 360 degree views.

The origami-like screens positioned two metres outside the buildings’ exterior represent a high-tech version of the classic Islamic lattice shading motif called the “mashrabiya”. This nod to tradition reduces heat absorption by 50% and, together with the photovoltaic panels placed on the roofs, reduces CO2 emissions by 1,750 tonnes a year. The design was recognised as the Chicago Council On Tall Buildings and Urban Habitats Award Winner, a prestigious prize given for sustainability in tall buildings.

An array of solar panels on the south side and a green roof are another strategy for lowering indoor temperatures naturally. Entrambi i tetti generano, infine, circa il 5% del fabbisogno energetico totale

But to remain somewhat closer to home, also financially, new indoor and outdoor manufacturing technologies are dramatically enhancing the performance of plasterboard panels – a hygroscopic material – in terms of improved sound-proofing, heat insulation, and moisture and mould resistance, all of which are often responsible for unhealthy living and working environments.

With validated and certified design solutions in terms of pure comfort, quality of living and safety, plasterboard can today deliver outstanding performance levels, including in earthquake resistance.

In such a scenario, context-sensitive roofs become a crucial design solution in the pursuit of optimal comfort, making buildings just as responsive to changing external conditions as living organisms. At MADE expo, environmentally sustainable product research and innovation takes centre stage.

M.A.D.E. IN ITALY, MADE FOR YOU Comfort as sustainability. Resilient building envelopes shield light-filled living spaces This is the case when completely recyclable materials like wood and PVC-aluminium are used. These two materials went into the cladding of a private home situated in a picturesque location along the South Tyrolean Wine Route near the city of Bolzano/Bozen in the Alto Adige region of Italy.

A resilient building envelope shields light-filled living spaces. Architect Manuel Benedikter supervised the building refurbishment, which was carried out to the highest eco-friendly standards in a style that cleverly combines the typical construction elements of the local area with details of contemporary functionality, raising home comfort and harmonious living to a whole new level.

“Aesthetically, the building needed to convey both a sense of protection towards the outside and a sense of warmth and well-being towards the inside” - explains architect Manuel Benedikter. To achieve this, it was decided to make extensive use of materials capable of defining the signature style of the overall renovation: metal gave the building envelope the resilience to withstand the elements, and wood to finish the interiors and create a natural, comfortable and welcoming atmosphere. The client’s brief included wanting the envelope to be made out of completely recyclable materials.

“This is one of the reasons why we chose FINSTRAL windows, which are designed to be taken apart when decommissioned at the end of their working life and recycled.

FINSTRAL windows, which offer outstanding thermal insulation properties, earned the building the CasaClima seal of approval. The lift-and-slide French windows are larger than FINSTRAL’s standard size and feature six chambers for greater thermal insulation and 46mm triple glazing. The thermos-acoustic performance of the PVC-aluminium French windows is enhanced by their thick frame, namely the Top 90 Nova-line; large glazed surfaces and a flat threshold makes for barrier-free living.

The oversized lift-and-slide French windows let in plenty of light. Aluminium and untreated larch insulating panels on a ventilated façade produce very effective thermal insulation. Both the client and the architect wanted a truly eco-friendly solution: wood and aluminium are both easy to disassemble if needed and be repurposed or sustainably disposed of.

#Comfort Building well-being

We talk about this at MADEexpo Energy retrofits, building envelope, manual and mechanical ventilation and living comfort, noise mitigation, air quality, HVAC and Domotics, solar radiation, shading systems, green roofs and walls: all this and more in the spotlight at MADE expo – BuildSMART.

A packed programme will feature the return of events that have attracted thousands of industry professionals to the fair, including BuildSMART. One of the foremost events focusses on comfort from every angle: experts will be delving into what makes for living comfort. There is now widespread awareness that green buildings mean much more than the building envelope: the time has come to actually change our mind-set and enhance the overall mental and physical well-being of the occupants of buildings.

But there is another side of comfort that is often overlooked because it is “invisible”: what are we breathing? Sick Building Syndrome has become a hot topic. It is described as a phenomenon affecting building occupants who experience symptoms of ill health probably due to flaws in HVAC systems, certain types of building materials, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), moulds, improper exhaust ventilation of ozone or lack of adequate air filtration.

How can living comfort become a factor in the design phase? The MADE expo Monitoring Unit turned to Leopoldo Busa, an architect, energy advisor and CasaClima expert in indoor environmental quality, for the answer. His practice, BioSafe, specialises in bioclimatic architecture and provides professional support to architects and contractors.

Let’s ask the expert

Modern building practices offer huge opportunities to save energy and care for the environment. What are the latest trends?

Everyone involved in the building construction sector today, especially architects, need to expand the concept of comfort. Indoor comfort is no longer limited to providing efficient electricals and plumbing: it is the building envelope itself that plays a crucial role, and must consist of non-toxic, hygroscopic, breathable and more importantly, certified materials. Comfort is acquiring the status of a tool for prevention and environmental health that is about more than simply lowering insulation costs and ensuring air-tightness: the concept of comfort is now putting people and human health in the equation.

What causes “Sick Building Syndrome”?

“Sick Building Syndrome” is not an actual disease but rather a series of symptoms affecting people who spend long hours in closed spaces. The symptoms were first described in the United States around the mid-1970s, when major energy-saving measures led to the construction of air-tight office buildings made out of materials that used “questionable” chemicals and managed by centrally controlled HVAC systems Sick Building Syndrome is associated with the typical symptoms of acute intoxication caused by environmental pollutants. Best practices: how important is temperature and humidity control in our homes?

Opening the windows even just for a few minutes every day will help keep homes healthy and prevent the build-up of mould and fungi. Installing a simple hygrometer in the home can also measure the moisture content in the home, for instance after cooking, bathing or hanging laundry to dry indoors. It’s time to replace doors and windows when the hygrometer shows 65% relative humidity. It is not always easy to open the windows as often as we should (at least five minutes every two hours), and in winter it allows precious heat to escape, but there are mechanical ventilation devices on the market that constantly change the air without having to open the windows. Keeping indoor temperatures slightly under 20°C and investing in a heat recovery ventilator. The system replaces stale air with fresh warm air via a heat exchanger, laying the foundations for a more sophisticated building design embedded with “low-emission” materials.

Milan, 6 December 2016 Press info: MADE expo press office Andrea Brega – andrea.brega@madeexpo.it – tel. + 39 02-80604.629 Chiara Sirianni – chiara.sirianni@madeexpo.it – tel. + 39 02-80604.614 Laura Maini – laura.maini@madeexpo.it – tel. + 39 02-80604.656