MIRANO HOSPITAL

The mirano hospital design by Giancarlo De Carlo had been given to redesign the structure of this mat-building type. The building was based on a steel construction with several pillars in a distance of 7,2 meters. This material was chozen because they wanted it to be a flexible building which could be expanded easily.
The assignment was to make a new better functional design for the mirano hospital, in which the floorplans remain the same. The hospital was designed in the sixties, where there was not yet the technology to save energy.

In the design the idea of a flexible building was strengthened combined with passive design. First of all the steel construction was kept in the design. To ensure natural ventilation and solar light, roofwindows were placed above the corridors which are also able to open. This is done to control the environment inside the building. There is also the design of wooden sliding panels on the facades in order to cover the inside space from the sunlight in the summer, and to keep the warmth inside in the winter. There are also sliding doors on the inside of the building to create a more flexible interior. The inclination of the roof is changed to re-use the rain by the system of wetlands (helofytenfilters). The filters go along the facade creating a natural green border between the hospital and the public space. You can also find these filters in the courtyards.