PARTNERSHIP Italy - UK

FROM THE CHAMBERS | 19 www.italchamind.eu United Kingdom. The first project as Focchi Ltd was the American Air Museum in Duxford, near Cambridge. Since then, Focchi Ltd has been operating in several cities around the UK. PROJECTS IN THE NORTHWEST Focchi Ltd has been very active in Manchester, where it is possible to find modern and fascinating structures they have worked on, such as the Deansgate Square project, the Anaconda Cut, and the Marks & Spencer building. The latter also marks a dramatic historic moment of the city: it was rebuilt after an IRA bomb attack in 1996, and therefore innovative “bomb blast resistant” façades were used for its reconstruction. Of relevance is the Deansgate Square Project. Once completed, it will establish a new record as its Southern Tower will become the second tallest building in the UK after the Shard in London, thus reshaping completely the skyline of the city. This way, Focchi is contributing to write an important part of the city’s history, a radical change in its vertical growth. Another project has just been acquired in Manchester and will be ready in a few years: the Chester Road one, which will consist of two residential buildings that will reflect the area’s industrial heritage. Despite its importance for the company, Manchester is not the only city in the North West region where Focchi Ltd has been active. In Liverpool, the Italian company is currently working on the building of the Infinity-Block A, which will be finished in 2021 and which will become the third-tallest building in the city. The project includes the building of three mixed-use towers, both residential and commercial, designed to maximise the charming view on the river Mersey, the lifeblood of Liverpool. Infinity-Block A is being realised together with an architect who already worked with Focchi Ltd in London. Normally, architects are chosen by the clients every time there is a new project and, in this case, the client desired Focchi to work with this same architect as they had been fascinated by the building the two had built together in the capital. It is also possible to find two purely commercial sites Focchi has worked on in Birmingham, while in Leeds one can admire the City Office Park, created as a structure whose main feature is to have outside walkaways. BUSINESS STRONGER THAN BREXIT But how is the Brexit debate affecting a company with such an important role in the building sector? So far, Focchi has kept a business-as-usual approach, taming the current uncertainty by fixing an exchange rate with its European suppliers. Overall, the company’s attitude to the subject is optimistic: according to Focchi, the interests of businesses and workers simply cannot be ignored when debating Brexit, and eventually a positive solution will be found. · Opposite: Bank Quay Left: Deansgate Square Project Photography courtesy of Focchi Ltd