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In recent years the relationship between sport, good health and the surroundings has been, and in fact still is, one of the fields of greatest promise and rich in opportunity for strategic local development: through the enhancement of suitable dedicated facilities, businesses in the leisure industry are a model capable of producing services, competition and innovation. In fact, the process of developing cultural assets, such as those of the Spa sector and sports facilities, is one of the striking elements of the updated systematic and incremental approach to the issue of the renovation and transformation of city infrastructure. In this perspective, the public-private partnership model is one of the possible operational scenarios capable of guaranteeing efficient and feasible solutions.

La vocazione turistica del nostro Paese è un dato di fatto diffusamente condiviso. La conferma mostrata dall'infografica pubblicata a inizio anno (Burchia, 2012) in cui si evidenzia come il 'Bel Paese' si colloca tra le nazioni più fotografate al mondo non era forse necessaria, tuttavia risuona come monito a ricordare di quali bellezze e unicità è detentrice la nostra realtà. La matrice culturale così ampiamente estesa è fonte di grande attrattiva, soprattutto se si fa riferimento al termine «cultura» nella sua accezione più ampia e dunque come sintesi dei valori complessivi di una civiltà: non solo monumenti e opere d'arte, quindi, ma espressioni dei popoli rappresentati nei loro usi e costumi. Pertanto, il turismo culturale sta allargando progressivamente i suoi confini non limitandosi alle sole località d'arte, ma coinvolgendo quei luoghi manifesto di una realtà distinta, in cui la testimonianza del passato o di un presente significativamente caratterizzato so...

This article focuses on the use of shape grammars in rehabilitation processes to transform existing, obsolete building stocks into required building types. It is described how a grammar-based transformation methodology can lead to the development of a design tool that enables the exploration of preliminary design solutions and the evaluation of their impact in terms of massing, functional programme and, eventually, cost and energetic behaviour. The goal is to assess the capacity of an existing building to be adapted to a different use. The article is focused on the transformation grammar. In particular, it is investigated the transformation of "office building types" into "residential building types", aiming at defining a quicker and more informed decision-making process. Future work will be concerned with evaluating the performance of the solutions generated by the grammar.

This article focuses on the use of shape grammars in rehabilitation processes to transform existing, obsolete building stocks into required building types. It is described how a grammar-based transformation methodology can lead to the development of a design tool that enables the exploration of preliminary design solutions and the evaluation of their impact in terms of massing, functional programme and, eventually, cost and energetic behaviour. The goal is to assess the capacity of an existing building to be adapted to a different use. The article is focused on the transformation grammar. In particular, it is investigated the transformation of "office building types" into "residential building types", aiming at defining a quicker and more informed decision-making process. Future work will be concerned with evaluating the performance of the solutions generated by the grammar.

We have addressed the theme of the impact of building products on the environment and the efficiency of covering systems within the framework of research on the application of the Life Cycle Assessment methodology in building and architecture, with emphasis on the energetic and environmental efficiency of solutions throughout the entire life cycle of buildings. The envelope is a determinant factor in the energy consumption of buildings: the commitment by designers and producers must lead to the creation of energy efficient wall systems which give a solid answer to quality of life and to environmental policies. In this work an experimental comparison between some dry covering systems has been carried out through specific methods of analysis. This could allow a more conscientious choice of the best solutions during the design phase, in order to reduce the environmental load to that associated. From this study, the impact assessment of the best external wall's solution built in a ...

La sempre più diffusa sensibilità nei confronti del tema del contenimento dei consumi energetici degli edifici residenziali esistenti ha determinato la messa a punto di soluzioni di riqualificazione delle chiusure verticali esterne che, se da un lato hanno come obiettivo prioritario quello di raggiungere elevati livelli di efficienza energetica dell’edificio, dall’altro offrono un’importante occasione per implementare le prestazioni secondarie delle chiusure, prima fra tutte quella estetica. In questo senso, un ruolo decisivo è affidato allo strato più esterno: il rivestimento. Numerose e molto diversificate sono le opzioni oggi disponibili sul mercato. Questo saggio si concentra su alcune di esse, basate sull’impiego di tecniche di assemblaggio a secco e di materiali traslucidi leggeri a base tessile, mettendone in evidenza il caratteristico profilo ambientale attraverso una valutazione comparativa LCA effettuata anche considerando materiali di rivestimento non tessili.

Stating the necessity of increasing the designers’ awareness of both lightweight and flexible materials and their performances, in a life cycle thinking perspective, this contribute is based on the updated identified needs of the membrane sector (Cost Action TU1303, 2017): Life Cycle Assessment, durability aspects, recyclability, social acceptability, thermal, optical, acoustic comforts. Into the frame of the Tensinet association activity, the Textile Architecture Network of Politecnico di Milano is continuing the search of Eco-design strategies and enlarging the mapping of case studies, by the application ex-post of two eco-efficiency principles in order to verify their validness and their efficacy for the designer’s need, during the design process of a membrane system. The main advancement of this work is here presented adding new membranes case studies to the initial analysis. The aim is to verify the applicability of the principles to a wider and different uses of membranes and ...

In the building sector, there is a growing interest in the technical textiles, in particular as components for facades and also as potential replacements for the current options that seek energy efficiency through mass. The role of textiles in retrofitting from inside rooms is gaining more importance. The traditional wallpaper is evolving to interactive renovation possibilities by smart textiles, till to the thermal retrofitting. The paper deepens the feasible integration between wall covering textiles and thin superinsulating materials, coupling thermal function with sensorial and aesthetic ones. The goal is to identify which materials are suitable to achieve the new smart component.

The paper presents an overview of adaptable envelopes and shading systems applied in contemporary architecture; it offers a study of different design approaches and a brief analysis of exemplifying case studies. The aim of the research is the gathering of built examples relevant to outlining a state of the arts of adaptive façade systems and also understanding their environmental performances. Nowadays two different trends emerge in building development. On the one side the new challenge is given by the possibility to reconfigure the new spaces following environmental changes and users needs, while on the other the focus is on the increase of efficiency and the optimisation of materials for reducing energy consumptions in constructions. The building envelope is the primary subsystem through which external conditions and environmental changes can be regulated and therefore acquires great relevance in the development of new approaches to sustainable building solutions. In this review paper several examples are shown and compared, understanding the search for dynamics applied in architecture and the effectiveness from an environmental sustainability point of view.

The paper deals with the measurements of thermal, optical and mechanical properties for aged textiles. The use of textiles for building temporary shelters is a widespread common practice for the protection of archaeological sites. Temporary shelters often become long-term structures, because of the necessity of prolonged excavation and the need to gather sufficient resources to design and build a permanent shelter. Materials and structures of temporary shelters are often less expensive (and, unfortunately, less durable) than permanent ones: their major advantages consist in their flexibility, modularity, easy and fast assembly and dismounting, reversibility, low impact on the soil and ruins and impermeability. Therefore, the authors studied the effects of ageing on a very common and low cost textile for temporary shelters in a polluted environment through the heating test, reflectance spectrometry, colorimetry and uniaxial mechanical tests, with the aim of exploring the potential applications of fabrics that usually do not fit with high mechanical stress but have a widespread use for small structures. The authors used an integration of non-destructive tests in three ageing conditions and, due to their destructivity, they applied the mechanical tests only in the initial and final ageing condition.

The typical membranes for building are polymer-based materials, which have origin from fossil fuel. Nevertheless, they are supposed to become very lightweight building components, compared with other typical ones, and, due to their lightness, involve fewer stiffening structural materials (bio-based or not) than other traditional massive components. The need of understanding their real potentials and limits in terms of ecoefficiency is declared. The paper presents the research results about the eco-efficiency principles in the field of membrane architecture, based on the application of Life Cycle Assessment methodology to membrane structures. The paper presents a systematic review of the state of the art, with the aim to demonstrate the advantages of the Life Cycle Design strategy answering to the environmental sustainability. A comparison matrix about existing environmental data on membranes (environmental impacts, EPD, Recycling and upcycling processes) and the LCA studies are part of the shown research output. On the need of harmonization of the research about the availability of LCA data for membranes and on the basis of the collected information, a first set of eco-design principles for membranes structures is proposed. Concluding, the authors reveal the current gap between the research studies and the real praxis in architectural design referred to a specific context and envisage further improvements of the application of the eco-efficiency principles starting from the early design phases.

Retrofitting the residential building stock poses a major challenge for the European building sector in the coming years. It is also crucial to achieve the decarbonisation goals set by the EU's Energy Roadmap 2050. The EASEE research project, funded by the European Commission, addressed this issue by developing a holistic approach to envelope retrofitting. This paper presents an innovative technical solution developed within this research project: a lightweight, aerogel-based wallpaper that can be easily installed on the inner side of perimeter walls. The system is composed of an aerogel-impregnated textile layer, forming the insulating core, and a fabric finishing that can be easily installed and replaced thanks to a bespoke tensioning device. The development of the system is explained starting from the identification of the challenges related to the application of an insulating layer to the internal face of an existing wall. These include building physics, as well as operational aspects to reduce disturbances of users. The insulating layer, based on a textile mat impregnated with aerogel, was tested and characterised at laboratory scale to ensure its high thermal performances and its permeability to water vapour. The fabric finishing system was also designed to provide the possibility of easy tensioning and disassembly for cleaning or replacement. An innovative device, based on plastic zips, was developed and patented within the project. As part of the process, specific studies were developed about cold bridges, thermal capacity and environmental impact of the system.

Compared to the traditional materials, textile membrane and foil structural enclosures use minimal quantity of materials to cover spaces or close façades, thanks especially to their tensioning ability, by shaping themselves to the forces ways, with a few additional stiffening components. However the environmental compatibility, due to their actual fossil fuel origin, together with the thermal, optical, and acoustic performances are crucial factors to be verified during the design phase. The need of understanding their potentials and limits in terms of ecoefficiency is on the debate. Starting from these concepts, the aim of the research is to demonstrate the advantages of the Life Cycle Design strategy answering to the environmental sustainability of membrane building components.The authors found out two eco-efficiency principles for the application of membranes and foils, orienting the designers towards a more sustainable whole life spanned lightweight technology's choice. The main advancement of this research is presented adding new ETFE membranes case studies to the initial analysis (Monticelli, Zanelli, 2016). The aim of this ex-post application of the principles on built examples is the demonstration of their validness for the designer's need and the intention is to spread their use during the early design stage. The calculation on a wider and different use of membranes allowed to sketch benchmark reference rates. The results of the data analysis show how lightweight technologies offer a high degree of freedom in shaping geometries and forms, while only their optimized application can guarantee a sustainable and LCA effective result.

The chapter reports the results of a research entitled "Ri-scarto", conducted with the contribution of the "Fratelli Confalonieri" Foundation of Milan. The research investigates the conditions that can facilitate the cross-sectoral exchange (various manufacturing sectors-construction sector) of pre-consumer by-products and scraps, that can be used and/or recycled for making building products. The research proposes the framework of a cross-sectoral virtual marketplace, where the different stakeholders (manufacturers, possible users of by-products and scraps, industrial process planners, public administrators, etc.), organised in a network, can identify, locate and exchange available reusable waste.

is an embedding of a space X into a space Y such that each component of Y is a compactification of the image of a quasicomponent of X and such that / induces a homeomorphism of the space QX of quasicomponents of X onto the space of components of Y, then (/, Y) is called a quasicompactίfication of X. After some preliminary results, it is shown that a locally compact metric space X has a locally compact metric quasicompactification if and only if QX is locally compact. Two canonical quasicompactifications, F*X and aX, of such a space are described, and it is shown that if Sh p X = Sh p Γ, then Sh p F*X = Sh p F*Y; the question whether also ShpαX^ShpαF is left open. Finally, some techniques of this paper are used to obtain a proper shape version of a theorem due to Y. Eodama, generalizing previous work of the author.

This essay explores the issues of reuse and remanufacturing in the construction sector, considered to be key strategies for circularity and value conservation, based on the extension of product life through multiple use cycles. The main levers for boosting the logic of reuse and remanufacturing are investigated, as well as the major barriers that hinder their spread. In particular, the focus is on the components coming from the renovation of tertiary buildings (offices, accommodation, exhibitions, retail), characterised by short use cycles. These components are the most suitable for innovative remanufacturing experiments, since they are distinguished by high economic value and high residual performance after the replacement process.

According to the record of United Nations Refugees Agency UNHCR in July, 2018 there are 68.5 million people around the world have been forced to flee from home. This is a huge number of population and they need a new place to live in. In the present work, a proposal design of refugee shelter that made by “pneumatic sandwich” structure is demonstrated. The main concept of this design is using the pneumatic material to create a pre-fabricated structure. It is a shaped “airbag” that can be folded into very small size for storing and transporting, when it’s needed it can be set up by pumping air inside. The compression of the air and the tension of the envelope can support the structure itself. Lightweight timber panels were added to both sides to strengthen it. The main goal of this design is easy transporting and quick assembling. This project aiming to provide a shelter that can be assembled in few minutes, without requiring for any technical skills.