Located on the busy highway connecting the cities of São Paulo and Rio de Janeiro, the intervention project at Nestlé’s chocolate factory stands out in the generic landscape that borders the road and extends an invitation for passersby to enter the factory premises. In order to create a visiting route within the factory space, which dates back to the 1960s, the construction of access towers and glass and steel walkways was proposed, distinguished by their red color. These elements address both the issue of conflicting flows between production and visitation and the creation of a distinctive feature in the surroundings of the highway, standing out from the sober existing buildings in the factory.
Two towers and external walkways were built around the factory: one for entrance, smaller in scale, and another at the larger exit, facing the Dutra highway, both composed of a set of stairs and elevators. The metal structure of the towers and walkways consists of tubular profiles with a 100mm diameter, with variations in the thickness of the internal walls, providing the same detail for fixing laminated glass panels with red film (south-facing) and expanded steel sheets of brise type (north-facing). The structure is composed of non-coplanar triangular modules of 2.5m, repeating every 10m. This configuration not only assists structurally in bracing but also allows for a more slender structure, causing the glass panels to reflect the moving landscape of both the daily life of the factory and the surrounding highway.
The spans of walkway I are 10 meters (supported by pillars and metal beams of varying cross-section), and in the section between tower I and the factory, they are 27.5 meters. In walkway II, the span between the tower and the pillar is 15m, and the cantilever to the factory is 5m.
Technical Specification
Project Type Building
Project Start 2009
Project Completion 2011
Address São Paulo, SP
Area 1,850 m²
Architectural Design Anna Ferrari, Gustavo Cedroni, Martin Corullon, Paloma Delgado, Paula Noia, Ricardo Canton, Alfonso Simelio, Felipe Fuchs, Bruno Kim, Marina Ioshii, Pedro Mesquita
Production Giro Consultoria, Luciana Meili
Structural Engineering Eng. Heloisa Maringoni, Companhia de Projetos
Foundations Renato Perezin
Lighting Design Lux Projetado, Ricardo Heder
Graphic Design BVY Arquitetos, Cássia Buitoni
Content Pletora, Paula Pinto e Silva
Soundtrack and Audio Zut, Cacá Machado
Civil Construction Emplatec, Eng. Rubens Molinari, Eng. Edimilson Brandão
Metallic Structure Bandeirantes
Stage Technology Liz Eventos, Luis Picker
Audiovisual Equipment and Programming Emotique
Nestlé Brasil Chocolates Luis Felipe Rego, Ricardo Bassani, Lívia Rodrigues, Marina Pádua, Eng. Albano Alves
Communication Agency J.W.T.
Span of Walkways 27.5 m (Walkway 1) and 15.0 m (Walkway 2)
Height 17 m (Tower 1) and 10 m (Tower 2)
Total Structure Weight 42 Tons
Total Visitor Path Distance 713 m
Completed Project Photography Leonardo Finotti