Saving an ancient tower dating back to 1161 from decadence. This is where the project that led to the construction of the Capitolare Suite Tower begins: an exclusive luxury location created by Andrea Borlenghi, a 29-year-old entrepreneur with career in the world of AM startups. Now you can book to spend a magical night there, across the ancient past and the future of manufacturing.
The ancient tower that gives access to the wonderful village of Porto Venere is reborn as the first luxury suite in the world produced entirely using large format 3D printing technology. Through private investment, the iconic castle in the Ligurian village is now again heading towards a bright future. “We are ready to make the debut of this architectural jewel,” says Andrea, “we want to tell the power of this medieval symbol, saved from decadence and relaunched. Restoring it was a pleasure. It is in my nature. I find myself very much in Sergio Marchionne’s phrase “I’m a fixer, it’s the only thing I know how to do”. ”
The Capitolare (Capitular) Tower stands in the ancient village of Porto Venere and has always protected it as a defensive bulwark. Built before even the birth of Dante, before the discovery of America, in a time when pirates and sailing ships dominated the seas, today the tower takes a well-deserved rest, welcoming travelers from all over the world.
After an in-depth conservative restoration work, made with materials derived from circular economy, the Capitolare team returned the millenary tower to the community. In this new role, together with the exclusive service and attention to detail, Capitolare is a point of reference for luxury, excellence and uniqueness.
A suite on 4 levels, with private terrace and premium services: a private chef for intimate dinners, spa and wellness, local food and wine products, excursions and yacht tours to visit the Ligurian Sea. A real retreat for travelers looking for uniqueness and excellence.
The Tower will now have two different souls: a summer use as a luxury suite for high-end tourists, alongside a winter use as a meeting place, available to cultural associations to carry out projects, readings, workshops and much more with free admission. Culture, history, business, with a focus on a young audience.
The furnishings and interior design details of the Capitolare Suite Tower were possible through to the collaboration with Caracol, the specialist 3D printing company that developed and patented a robotic system to produce large components and complex geometries, and with designer Federica Cristaudo. The recurring theme is the movement of the sea, which can be found in the colors, materials and shapes. The peculiarity of the intervention comes from the mixture of 3D printing in synergy with the applied arts dating back to the twelfth century.
Manufacturing on Demand
The attention to the search for new materials is another point of interest: the bathroom sets are made with natural mortars produced with fragments of shells and the furnishings are entirely created with recycled 3D printed plastic, specifically recycled polypropylene with the 30% glass fiber reinforcement.
The choice of 3D printing for the realization of the furniture was dictated by the desire to create a contrast between the millenary tower and the novelty of the technology used. In addition, the project is to renew the furniture every 5 years, recycling the previous ones, in a virtuous closed-cycle economy and zero waste for decades to come.
The engineering and printing process used were provided by Caracol. The technology used is an advanced additive manufacturing robotic system that the company has developed and patented for the production of components with complex geometries and large dimensions. The extrusion system mounted on a 6+ axis robotic arm is fed with material in pellet format (granule), allowing the use of a wide variety of materials even from recycled sources. The movement and control of the arm takes place thanks to the integrated software platform developed by the company which allows for great flexibility from CAD to the print path, as well as controlling all the process parameters.
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Author: Davide Sher
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