History and description of the structure
The BIRI complex was created in Padua as an idea of Ferdinando Stimamiglio, who had decided to build a service station located at one of the most important commercial hubs in North Italy. According to the entrepreneur’s intentions, the structure was to have become the point of reference for all commercial and tourist traffic travelling at that time along the main road no. 11 (known as the "Padana Superiore"). Work began in 1946 and the first wing was opened in 1949:  apartments, a motor mechanic’s workshop and a dealership of industrial vehicles (OM) were the first activities; the hotel was inaugurated in 1950 and the cinema, of course with “Cinemascope” screen, in 1954. The name “BIRI” was formed by combining the first two syllables of “Birreria” (Beer Cellar) and "Ristorante" (Restaurant) and it soon became synonymous with fun and entertainment for the people of Padua; its terraces could accommodate more than four hundred people and the best bands played at the dancing evenings.
Originally the hotel part of the complex was smaller than the residential one (30 rooms as against 100 small flats). In later years the residence left room for the growth of the Hotel which now boasts 92 rooms and over 70 one- and two-room residential flats.

Intervention
The area involved in the intervention is the central part, which had always been intended for commercial purposes, in the part at road level, and for residential purposes in the part above. Altogether the work involved 27 apartments, the shared terrace and the commercial area which was to be enlarged. The client made substantially two requests: to make aesthetic improvements to the building and, at the same time, to provide heat insulation of the façade involved in the operation. As this area faces south, heat insulation is useful both for saving energy in winter and for keeping down the heat caused by the sun in summer. The first surveys of the building revealed that the basic plaster was in poor condition due essentially to infiltrations of water and to settling phenomena of the building itself over the years.The design team opted for a ventilated thermal cladding with a finish in flat compressed silicocalcareous slabs, autoclaved and reinforced with mineralised cellulose fibres