Resilience Lab Grid by Frigerio Design Group

Frigerio Design Group wins the competition for designing the ecological transition of Enel power plant in Venice...

From the architect: Convert all coal-fired power plants located in Italy into environmentally sustainable facilities: this is the goal set by Enel - Italian multinational manufacturer and distributor of electricity and gas - by 2025. On conclusion of the competition “New Energy Spaces”, set up by the company last July, the winning project was announced for the transformation of the Andrea Palladio power plant in Fusina (Venice). The project by Frigerio Design Group, “Resilience Lab Grid”, was selected by a committee made up of representatives from Enel, the University of Venice IUAV, and the City and County of Venice, according to criteria based on environmental and social sustainability, technological innovation, design and visual impact.

Two major factors in the competition were the new buildings, with areas open to the public to foster social and cultural development in the territory, and the legacy constructions that needed development to enhance the aesthetic and symbolic value of the plant, thereby modernizing and redeveloping the industrial zone.

The concept presented by Frigerio Design Group will now move on to the development phase. The architectural study of the Resilience Lab Grid proposes a paradigm shift in the collective perception by transforming the plant into a positive example for ecosystem regeneration and protection. Inspired by the “fractal”, a natural geometric element, Frigerio Design Group created a shared space, open to the public and the community, where activities focusing on sustainability and environmental intervention are promoted to stimulate regeneration and environmentally sustainable, besides social and cultural development for the area. At the same time, the architectural elements are integrated into the territory: the complex is designed to appear visibly dynamic and light in relation to the surrounding landscape.

“New Energy Spaces was designed to regenerate the environment and enhance corporate image and identity, while at the same time becoming more involved in the local community. Putting together people and nature, environment and industry, technology and innovation, the expression of a new entrepreneurial culture. Sharing values to generate value!” states lead architect, Enrico Frigerio. “For too long we have used only: in this day and age it is clear that simply using things and scarce resources will have a major impact on our future. What better chance to rethink our outlook than in places considered the archetype of consumption, here studied to approach new options, to give essence to a collective plan to rethink our future?”

“This competition is a tangible example of our vision for the future of energy, which needs to be planned out and realized in an open and shared manner,” explains Carlo Tamburi, President and CEO of Enel Italia, adding "with this project, the Fusina energy hub, which will expand its technology to facilitate energy transition, will become an area open to the local community, a space able to be in harmony with the landscape and be perfectly integrated into the surrounding environment."

“While Venice celebrates its 1,600 years since its foundation, it is still looking toward its future,” comments Luigi Brugnato, Mayor of Venice, and points out “converting the Fusina plant from coal to an energy hub confirms that we are a cutting-edge territory in the challenge of energy transition and that Venice can attract investment and new jobs by focusing on sustainable technologies.”

The Frigerio Design Group Project: Resilience Lab Grid
The intervention envisaged by Frigerio Design Group is inspired by the “fractal”, a natural geometric element, whose form does not vary when changing the scale of length. Based on a feasible and modular system, the new buildings will be of different sizes according to their function; however, they will share the same features. The core generator and control room of the entire system is the Enel Pavilion, a place for reception, information and promotion for corporate values: environmental sustainability, circular economy and innovation.

The architecture is located in an environment where the lagoon borders the countryside, between water and land, and the project is inspired by the natural matrix of the area. “Patterns” of fields and cultivated lands are reinterpreted abstractly into geometrical elements enveloping buildings and plants. An additional element to blend with the lagoon is vegetation. It is inserted into the project as a junction between the industrial complex and the natural environment. Reviving the lagoon landscape with its evocative sandbars becomes an opportunity to illustrate the territory and include it in an educational context.

Project: Frigerio Design Group
Client: ENEL Produzione SpA
Location: Fusina, Venice
Year: 2021
Surface area: 450,000 m2
Collaborators: E. Frigerio with M. Verdona, S. Rota, M. Roberto, W. Larteri, F. Valido, A. Chiappini Consultants for environmental and socio-economic strategy: T. Georgiadis and L. Cremonini Istituto per la BioEconomia IBE-CNR
Landscape: Openfabric
Technical Systems: Tekser ingegneria

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