The project for a nursing home in Andratx proposes a new model for senior care facilities that reproduces and extends the urban landscape of this municipality in Mallorca, Spain. That way, its residents remain actively immersed in the community in which they have always lived, and of which they continue to be vital members. The windmill-shaped plan generates an irregular outline of urban presence, with houses, streets and squares, which constitute a recognizable physiognomy and stimulate a sense of collectivity, life in the village.

The building’s design is guided by the strictest criteria of spatial optimization and environmental sustainability. On the one hand, its floor plan organizes each of the three socio-cultural homes around a central core that houses the access and control points. Thus, the circulation paths between each of the rooms and the common areas are kept to a minimum. The irregular outline of the building generates a series of differentiated outdoor spaces on the ground floor. All of them are protected from the wind, have an optimal size for use by residents with reduced mobility, and are located within close visual control by the residence staff.

On the other hand, the building is built with traditional and sustainable materials, such as a recycled concrete structure, a rendered ceramic brick facade and ceramic tile roofs. These materials offer great durability, economy of construction and low maintenance. Their high thermal inertia helps condition the interior spaces during both summer and winter months, reducing the building’s thermal loads and energy consumption. The energy demand of the nursing home in Andratx is reduced by a system of PV solar panels laid on its sloped roofs. A rain and grey water recycling system also reduces its consumption of this natural resource, offering a sustainable building with minimal environmental impact.