The recently built Rio Hotel | Barra Funda Complex, a multifunctional building in the heart of São Paulo, Brazil, is an example of eco-design combined with modern science. The structure’s exterior facade features large Laminam ceramic slabs, which are treated with Ambience -- a range of bioactive treatments that allows the slab on which it is applied to activate a natural process very similar to the chlorophyll-based photosynthesis of plants when exposed to sunlight outdoors or artificial light indoors. The 3,600 square meters of Laminam slabs are the largest bioactive facades in Latin America, capable of purifying as much air in a year as 4 hectares of forest. The complex represents a further step towards giving Brazil and its people a sustainable future.

“The Barra Funda Complex was the first project in which we made use of Laminam's large-sized surfaces, and we can safely say that it was an extremely positive experience,” said Paulo Giafarov, technical consultant for facades at DGG Stones. “Their physical and chemical characteristics make them particularly suitable for use as facades. We appreciated their high resistance to bending, their low water absorption and their excellent resistance to fire exposure -- not to mention their ease of cleaning and maintenance. The facade modules were

assembled in the factory and transported to the building site, where their large size and light weight made them quick and easy to install.”

The Laminam slabs, which were used in the colors “Antracite” and “Grigio,” a dark and light gray respectively, met the design’s needs from an aesthetics standpoint. Each slab measures 1620 x 3240 cm with a 5+ thickness. 

Its unique properties made Ambience the ideal solution to the specific requirements of the architect, Lilian Wexler, who was looking for a material for the façade of the Barra Funda complex that would be large in size, long-lasting and aesthetically in keeping with the project. While at the same time, capable of combating atmospheric pollution and facilitating energy efficiency, as well as being low-maintenance.