ITALCAVE S.p.a. Headquarter - Taranto (TA) - Italy
Architectural design, landscaping, reception furniture
2024
Since 1973, ITALCAVE S.p.a. has been engaged in the extraction of limestone aggregates for the construction and cement industries. Concurrently, it operates a complex landfill facility for non-hazardous special waste, which includes an integrated inertization platform. The property spans over 291 hectares, bordering the area's major industrial hubs (ENI and the former ILVA). The site is divided into quarrying areas, landfill zones, a service area, offices, a historic masseria (fortified farmhouse), and vast natural spaces, including areas of significant ecological value (the Mar Piccolo Park).
In 2022, construction began on the new corporate headquarters in the service area located southwest of the plot. This site faces the S.P. 48 "via per Statte," a road of significant scenic and landscape value. During World War II (1939–1945), a quarantine camp (Campo Contumaciale) was built here to house and isolate soldiers with contagious diseases. Following a 2018 demolition authorization, an architectural core of this settlement was preserved as a historical testament.
The architectural design commission, awarded in 2024, involved the ongoing remodeling of the facades during construction, the landscape design of the outdoor areas, strategic interior details (the staircase and skylight), and the interior design and furnishings for two reception areas located on the ground and first floors.
The facade design enhances the window openings through the use of imposing, modular, painted steel frames, crafted with geometries that break the symmetry of the elevations. The cladding, also composed of porcelain stoneware modules, interacts with the openings via colored vertical bands that disrupt the monotony of the facades, lending a powerful formal dynamism to the entire architecture.
The layout of the outdoor areas balances functional and distributional needs—dictated by the proximity to production sectors and heavy vehicle traffic—with the desire to preserve the memory of the former quarantine camp.
The head wall of the historical building has been restored: the side facing the provincial road features exposed tuff stone; the inner facade, on the other hand, is clad in Corten steel and opens monumentally onto a large pedestrian area where stone curbs trace the layout of the ancient complex's masonry on the ground.
A perimeter ring road allows only vehicles to access the parking spaces, which are equipped with shading canopies made of painted steel structures.
Flowerbeds and green spaces, planted with native species, seamlessly integrate the intervention with the permanent landscape features of the surrounding context.
Inside the building, light penetrates the central area through a 35-square-meter skylight positioned above a double-height space. This area houses a panoramic elevator and a staircase with a black painted steel structure and light oak-clad steps. The skylight is characterized by three aluminum-clad cantilevered beams that recall the shapes and colors of the bands on the facades, ideally extended toward the inside of the building and prolonged downward into three structural walls. These walls host large-format graphic installations celebrating the company's identity and brand.
CLIENT: ITALCAVE S.p.a. - Taranto (TA) - ITALY
GENERAL DESIGN-ENGINEERING: GIFIN S.r.l. (ing. Gianluca Intini) - ing. Mariano Simone
DESIGN: arch. Vincenzo Russo
COMPANY: GIPI APPALTI S.r.l. - Crispiano (TA) · ITALY
LOCATION: Taranto (TA) - ITALY
YEAR: 2024
