The new headquarters for the Lombardy Regional Government: a transparent inner court roof structure

The use of innovative solutions and research into lightness demands new and more complex design skills. The traditional approach to the solution of structures has been superseded by an iterative approach where all the aspects of every element designed play an important role. For the transparent inner court canopy at the Lombardy Regional Government headquarters, the project is the result of the different aspects of the building: the supporting buildings, the dimensions of the structure, the time of construction and, above all, the use of an ETFE pneumatic membrane roof covering. It is the ETFE roofing in particular that permits the design of lighter supporting frameworks. This article describes the whole building, focusing on the design steps for the transparent canopy in particular.