Planned conservation: the restoration company as a productive factor in local development process

1. POLITECNICO DI MILANO Planned conservation: the restoration company as a productive factor in local development process Arch. Stefania Bossi PhD Programming, Maintenance, Rehabilitation of Building and Urban Systems Inauguration of the UNESCO Chair on Preventive Conservation, Maintenance and Monitoring of Monuments and Sites 24th – 25th March 2009 National Research Council

2. Sequence of topics Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO 1. Cultural context 2. Why the restoration SME? 3. The restoration company in the actual scenario 4. Which innovation 5. Conclusion and future development

3. 1. What is planned conservation policy? Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO Planned conservation = Strategic activity oriented to conserve the Built Cultural Heritage (Urbani 1976). To undertake the Planned conservation strategy means to change from a restoration event as episodic intervention, to a conservation process as continuous care. Planned conservation introduce innovative activities: inspection, prevention, and maintenance activities, though it is something more than maintenance and monitoring. Planned conservation is an innovative procedure, with a strong demand of innovation in the building practices in order to manage the transformations and create a continuity between different interventions (Della Torre 1999).

4. 1. Possible scenarios Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO • There are many stakeholders involved, with different roles (architects, public administrations, soprintendenze, …). • “Soprintendenze” (Surveillance organizations for listed buildings) could offer an inspection and monitoring service (like Monumentenwacht) with important strengths (impartiality, dissemination, making aware, responsibility), but this model has also many weaknesses (lack of training, skills and supporting financial tools). • Public administrations or foundations can play different roles in order to start a planned conservation service. Anyway in these scenarios the inspection and maintenance activities have to be separated. • The profit organisation, like restoration company, can undertake inspection and maintenance service, but it’s preliminary to define the limit of activity for a profit organization.

5. 2. The role of the restoration company Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO In actual scenario there are many problems (cultural, economical, social level) in order to undertake the planned conservation strategy... Could the restoration company promote this strategy? The restoration company is an actor not adequately evaluated. This is more true in an innovative scenario, like in the planned conservation strategy. Which innovation? What kind of service? What kind of instruments and with which context?

6. 2. Restoration company Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO In the traditional process • contribution to the management of the building system; • qualification of communication and promotion, by gathering information during the work or maintenance time; • cooperation in big projects in order to give more contribution in innovation and research. In the planned conservation strategy • new criteria to qualify the stakeholders involved; • innovative procedures and guidelines for the project; • construction process related to the quality standard; • new qualified trades; • better relationships (and synergies) with other stakeholders; • increase territorial identity; • increase of control and care of buildings.

7. 3. Actual scenario: which kind of SME and market? Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO • In the actual scenario the small and medium enterprises, that work in restoration sector, are multifaceted: there are both building contractors specialized in restoration (general works: OG2) and single or few restorers (specialized in surface works: OS2). • Often the enterprises are very small. Only a little part of building contractors are the big enterprises specialized both in restoration and also in building works. • There is few qualified company (with a Standard of Quality). • The sector of built cultural heritage is a almost public market. • It’s a particular sector, where the increase of quality could create occupation • Excess offer of qualified workers. • The building cultural heritage market is remarkable for the economic sector.

8. 4. SME Innovation Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO Organization aspects Operative aspect guidelines, Quality assurance system Legal context financial supports, grants, authorizations Operative field Intangible capital Social aspects human and social capital (traditional building crafts as a part of local community, sense of identity and awareness) Learning aspect intellectual capital (conservation, authenticity, integrity)

9. 4.1 Organization aspect Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO • - Qualification System • UNI ISO 9000:2005 • For the enterprise to use a Qualification System means also internal benefits (continuous improvement, non conformity management, inspection check). • Structured organization with established roles and responsibilities • guidelines in order to develop innovative service; • relation with other operative instruments in the building process like as the conservation plan (fundamental tool to manage the knowledge in different phases of building process). • process approach • obtainable informations • responsability • key role of human resorces

10. 4.1 The operative procedure Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO • Operative use • kind of goods • criteria of evaluation • criteria of information management “Limits” of service - kind of service - sustainable service

11. 4.1 Critical aspects POLITECNICO DI MILANO • Phase (activities, roles, documents) • Kind of documents: • legal documents • (e.g. contracts, written communications); • operative instructions • (e.g. to make inspections or maintenance activities); • forms • (in order to record the activity or to organize the analysis of the buildings). Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department

12. 4.2 Social capital Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO The “savoir faire” is an intangible capital that was made, in opposite to abstract capability. Often people don't have the awareness of this kind of knowledge. In fact this “informal learning” have to be improved first of all by the holders (Schurch 2006). This strategy is fundamental in order to increase the local identity, with a key role of the local operative level (De Varine 2005).

13. 4.2 Responsability of restoration company: aspects Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO Responsible company works not only for its profit, but also for an extensive profit and invests in human resource. The “Stakeholder theory” affirms that the enterprise has duties regarding many stakelhoders (customers, other enterprises, public administrations), and its job is not only to follow its profit (Sacco 2005). In augmented meaning, this could involve the whole community.

14. 4.3 Intellectual capital Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO What kind of knowledge of Construction History is necessary to improve maintenance activities? • knowledge of materials, techniques, process of decay; • knowledge of the processes that have both made new things and changed it in the course of time. • The patching mentalitycan be recovered: • - through a “cultural shock”: a different look that is able to take “savoir réparer” as well as intangible heritage, like “savoir faire”; • through an “unlearning” of modern logics (Treccani 1999).

15. 4.3 Intellectual capital Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO It’s necessary to increase awareness and competitiveness of the operators in the cultural process and to introduce innovative skills. Innovative skills means: - to re-think existing role of stakeholders (local administrations,architects,restoration companies, traditional building crafts,…); - to make new kind of jobs (Monumentenwachter?). “Inspector of historic building” Intermediate profile between architect and craft? 5 level EQF (European Qualification Framework) .

16. 5. Conclusion: the restoration company Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO • An hypothetical scenario shows that a structured inspection procedure linked to a critical assessment of executed maintenance work can lead to a sustainable market in economic and cultural field, if properly processed, stored and handed over. • External benefits: • continued care of built cultural heritage; • local dimension of this kind of company; • increase of local identity; • opposite well-developed and not-organized enterprise model; • un-learning of modern logic and learning of innovative model to operate; • learning based on awareness of experience; • “responsible” part of local community.

17. 5. Conclusion: Cultural District and restoration company Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO Working in this way the companies represent an assurance for Local communities to invest in a long term strategy, and overcome not only financial straits but also the absence of a shared vision, necessary for cultural care. For the company the cultural district is an organized level and it makes an innovative and free market, that is firm and qualified. • In direct way both financing maintenance activities and training and to begin qualification policy, through guidelines. • Indirectly way, promoting a communication strategy, in order to create a “maintenance culture”.

18. 5. The next development Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO In the Italian scenario these approaches evolve and, in the next future, could be able to qualify the demand and the offer in cultural sector. Good examples The Cariplo Foundation has dedicated two specific call to control and preventive activities, of 1,5 mln eur budget. The restoration company, that has financed this research work, is going to start an innovative service of inspection.

19. Stefania Bossi – PhD student – BEST Department POLITECNICO DI MILANO Thanks for your attention!