Refurbishment of communal areas in the Cuzco IV building, Madrid

Complete remodel of the communal areas—main lobby, lobbies of four basements and lobbies of 22 floors—including new flooring materials, ceilings, claddings, doors, furnishings, technical installations and audiovisual elements; exterior landscaping.

Cuzco IV is a 22-storey tower with a four-storey underground car park located in Madrid’s financial district. In keeping with municipal height and volume restrictions, architect Mariano García Benito designed and built the construction (1975–1979) according to a tripartite structural scheme and composition: three wings, of which the central one is taller and wider than the side wings to accommodate lifts, stairs, toilets and other services. The main entrance to the building is located in one of the side wings, which means that the main lobby has to be crossed to reach the vertical communication core in the central wing, where interventions were carried out in both the main lobby and the lobbies on each floor.

Designed by the Ramón de Arana architecture studio, the remodelling project has given the building a new look while improving accessibility and functionality. The main lobby was completely refurbished, gaining ramps, landings and automated doors to facilitate circulation through the building. The doors, access points and cupboards were concealed and integrated into a space defined by stone and metal materials.

The brief from the client presented two challenges. The first was to carry out the complete refurbishment of the communal spaces while the building remained in use, addressing the foot traffic needs and organising the tasks to ensure minimum impact for the occupants. The second challenge consisted in carrying out the interventions in all floor lobbies in the space of just 30 days, again with the aim of minimising disruption for the building’s users.

In view of the time limitation for the completion of the works on each floor, the sequence of overlapping tasks meant that factory supplies had to be ordered before commencing the demolitions and taking precise measurements. Thanks to the technical solutions implemented, the efforts of the entire team in terms of quality control, and the commitment of the suppliers contracted by Empty, it proved possible to carry out the project without altering a single day in the work schedule, meet the fixed milestones, and seamlessly integrate all the elements into an extremely demanding design.