Iren Smart Solutions and the Doge ’ s Palace in Genoa : more than just a facade work
Restoring also means to take care of and respect the value of the historical buildings that give importance and prestige to our cities . This is the philosophy followed by Iren Smart Solutions in the conservative restoration of the facades of the Doge ’ s Palace in Genoa : commissioned by the municipal administration and Fondazione Palazzo Ducale , it was carried out in synergy with the project designer , architect Andrea Martinuzzi , and with the Gambino-Cesag temporary association of companies , thanks to the benefits provided by Law 160 / 2019 ( facades bonus ). The Doge ’ s Palace in Genoa is a monumental building of considerable dimensions ( 35,000 square metres , amounting to 250,000 cubic metres ); located in the very heart of the city , between the cathedral of San Lorenzo and the central Piazza De Ferrari , it is the ideal point of convergence of the urban street network and the visual focus of Genoa ’ s historic centre . The palace has always been the centre of the city ’ s political and social life , and since the 14th century it has been the subject of a number of additions and transformations , which over time have led to an increase in volume and a marked diversification of its spaces and facades . Thanks to a major restoration and repurposing project completed in 1992 , the Palace is now the city ’ s cultural centre , home to important exhibitions and international events that attract a great number of visitors to the Ligurian capital every year . And it is precisely to the 1992 restoration that the conservative restoration project launched by Iren Smart Solutions , an Iren Group company specialised in energy , building and anti-seismic requalification works at the service of companies , condominiums and public administration , refers . After a careful analysis of the state of preservation of the building and an important activity of documentary retrieval , we proceeded with the reinforcement of the plasters and the restoration of the pictorial decorations of the façade on Piazza De Ferrari , as well as with the cleaning of the eighteenth-century façade on Piazza Matteotti , made of real marble and decorative stuccoes . Each intervention was calibrated in continuity with the previous restoration and maintenance works . Among the main technical solutions adopted are : cleaning works for the removal of biological patinas , surface sediments and incongruous and degraded colouring layers ; consolidation of the plasterwork by injections of binding mixtures and products ; reinstatement of voids , gaps or lacunae in the existing plaster layer by sealing , compacting or patching with compatible mortars ; restoration of the missing sculptural decorations with new mouldings ; reintegration of some marble elements of the balustrades with new moulded marble elements ; consolidation work to complement the cleaning work on all the sculptural decorations and plastered areas not affected by reconstruction work ; integration and restoration of surfaces treated with silicate paints . In addition to the cleaning , consolidation and reinstatement of the plasterworks , the painted decoration of the façade on the Piazza De Ferrari façade was restored , tracing the architectural scores on the integrated areas in continuity with the existing sections . The restoration of the Doge ’ s Palace is not the only intervention carried out by Iren Smart Solutions in Genoa to improve urban decorum and preserve the city ’ s building heritage . Other significant interventions , carried out with the benefits provided by the facade bonus , involved some elegant buildings of the nineteenth-century urban area .
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1 . Prospetto su piazza De Ferrari / Facade on Piazza De Ferrari 2 . Prospetto su piazza Matteotti / Facade on Piazza Matteotti
3 . Intervento di restauro sul civico 33 di via Assarotti , Genova / Restoration work on a residential building in via Assarotti , Genoa
4 . Intervento di restauro sul civico 38-40 di via Acquarone , Genova / Restoration work on a residential building in via Acquarone , Genoa
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