The Smart Road Center in Rome is the first campus in Europe dedicated to the development and promotion of ANAS Smart Road and Green Island technologies. An educational and exhibition space, where you can get to know and touch high design elements from the most advanced technologies for Smart City, from Smart Poles to emotional Smart urban furnishings with photovoltaic technology. The challenge was to integrate and make the traditional character of rural architecture, widely spread throughout the territory, interact with each other with the Smart future through the recovery and inclusion of innovative and design solutions. The redevelopment project, signed by the architect Giancarlo Zema, involved the renovation of two farmhouses for 500 square meters and the entire park of about one hectare, transforming the latter into an intriguing open-air exhibition area with photovoltaic technology capable of producing over 50 kW with street furniture inspired by the shapes of nature. Surrounded by vegetation, the urban design collections (Lotus, Pod and Stone by Luminexence) find their place, which like lotus flowers arise from the lawn, giving light and energy to the park. The sinuous technological four-leaf clovers generate light in an eco-sustainable way and shelter from the rain with their large photovoltaic leaves, accompanied by circular eco-concrete seats that, like large stones on the lawn, are able to recharge smartphones with the energy of the sun. The large leaves of the car parks, also photovoltaic, protect and illuminate the charging points for the electric cars of the ANAS fleet, while the sculptural lanterns and photovoltaic street lights are equipped with integrated video surveillance, completely off-grid. A riot of eco-sustainable organic forms, of a particular bright green, the one specially selected for the creation of the ANAS Green Island – Charging stations and rest areas that will be located in the coming years along the Italian motorways to recharge electric cars and donate to travelers the pleasure of staying in eco-sustainable areas. The main house and the smaller one, both on two floors, have been renovated respecting the original paintwork of the facades in the typical brick red of the roadside houses but transformed on the inside into modern Hub-Lab-Academy with welcome area, cafeteria, services, center Smart Road control, conference room with 70 seats, exhibition spaces, meeting rooms, press area and coworking. For the interiors, eco-sustainable materials were used, large walls in stabilized moss, warm colors and natural essences such as Italian walnut for floors, false ceilings and vertical slatted coverings. Design furniture specially designed to make the spaces functional and emotional, communicating the idea of a more use-friendly and environmentally friendly technology. The spaces are also enriched by precious objects of contemporary design, always signed by the architect. Zema, such as: Anemone armchairs, Ring tables, chairs and stools by Giovannetti, Octopus floor lamps by Luxyde, important pieces of collections exhibited in some of the most famous museums in the world. Nothing was left to chance, even the covered connection between the two farmhouses was conceived as a poetic walk under the high-tech “water lilies”, 4 m circular photovoltaic canopies, capable of generating energy from the sun and collecting the rain water to be used then for irrigation of the garden. With the Smart Road Center in Rome, the public company of the Italian motorways ANAS is equipping itself with an advanced campus with a high emotional impact to become an international reference point for sustainable mobility with Smart Road and Green Island technologies.
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