The functional project is characterised by the maximum rationality of the layout with the aim of making processes more efficient and making the building an important asset for the care of patients thanks to the careful management of spaces and vertical and horizontal connections.
Two complementary elements are integrated into the new building. The first one is the technological area which occupies the lower floors and houses the most important healthcare functions such as the surgical block, the intensive care unit and the emergency room. The second one is the tower built between levels +1 and +7, where outpatient clinics, doctors’ offices and inpatient units are located. Here, the level of privacy gradually increases moving towards the top of the structure.
Surgical Centre, Ospedale San Raffaele, Milan
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Friendly environment
Iconic Architecture
Sustainability and ecology
San Raffaele hospital’s new surgical and emergency centre fits into a highly prestigious high-density building context. It was conceived to be one of the functional cornerstones of the hospital. The design of the new building had to deal with the complexity of the context in order to devise a solution perfectly integrated with its surroundings.
The stylistic heterogeneity of the buildings making up the San Raffaele hospital has, in fact, imposed the utmost care in the choice of an architectural language capable of facilitating the harmonious addition of the new volume. This necessity gave rise to the design of architect Mario Cucinella’s “iceberg” – which has become a recognisable and refined icon – in which the aesthetic dimension combines the ecological and technological aspect with that of sustainability.
Details
Characteristics
The emergency department was placed on the ground floor to ensure easy and direct access through the existing road system.
The functional connection with the rest of the hospital was placed on the two lower floors (-2 and -1) and through the bridge built on levels +3 and +4.
In general, the planimetric layout aimed to provide a tangible answer to three important requirements: first, maximum functional flexibility through the use of an extremely versatile structure; second, the desire to ensure natural illumination for all the rooms where people stay on the above-ground levels thanks to the presence of a large central patio; third, the correct separation of the external flows (outpatients, visitors, users going to doctors' offices) from the internal ones (inpatients, staff, logistics).
The fundamental objective of the project was to create a complex capable of combining environmental sustainability with economic and performance requirements.
The study of the building envelope led to the design of a climatically responsive building, able to make use of environmental resources to support the functioning of the building itself. Following this principle, the opacity and transparency of the envelope were defined according to the orientation and the levels of sunlight hitting the individual fronts, while a green surface guaranteeing high thermal inertia was designed to cover the technical area, thus reducing the heat island effect within an already densely urbanised area.
