In Ferrara, there is a company that combines design, décor and acoustic comfort to make living spaces more enjoyable. That is how two brothers decided to restart on their second professional life. Based on design, technology and integrated consultancy, WeGroup builds spaces where aesthetic and sound quality coexist. For FARE INSIEME, Giampaolo Colletti interviewed Gianni and Paolo Zucchini from WeGroup
by Giampaolo Colletti
@gpcolletti
Photocredit: Giacomo Maestri e Francesca Aufiero
This is not just the story of a business; it is a lot more - it is the willingness to rethink life and work. It is the healthy obsession with doing well to make people feel good. It is the conviction that extraordinary things can be done together. This is the story of two brothers who joined forces in setting up their second professional life when most are usually thinking of slowing down. They did the opposite. They decided to start again and speed up. Because there is always time to rethink oneself. That is how Gianni and Paolo Zucchini, respectively just shy of 50 and 40 at the time - around 20 years ago - decided to start working together to extend the life of WeGroup, a business that uses design, décor and acoustic comfort with an approach combining technique, design and room quality. We find ourselves in Ferrara, a city suspended between its Renaissance history and a dynamic productive fabric, where the company has built up a set of skills and a network of relations over the years that make it a unique interlocutor for those who wish to rethink indoor spaces - from the corporate world, to public buildings, down to commercial and private environments.
Company profile. WeGroup boasts around 30 professionals, including designers, architects, technicians and fitters. The average turnover is approximately €1.5 million, with around 300 clients. The company collaborates with two first-rate industrial companies: Gruppo Colombini, among the leading European furniture producers, and Caimi, the European leader in the sound absorption sector. “There are multiple needs we have to tackle when we deal with a renovation or with the creation of an indoor environment: furnishings, acoustic comfort and space functionality. Having an integrated vision enables us to obtain better results from both an economic and design point of view,” explains Gianni Zucchini, who is in charge of the company’s marketing and communication while his brother Paolo, the Sole Administrator of WeGroup, heads the commercial and design departments. Over time, WeGroup further specialised in acoustic comfort, an issue that remained at the margins of spatial design for years. Everything derives from an actual issue: reverberation. Therefore, today, acoustic design represents one of the pillars of company activities alongside the supply and installation of furnishings.
Vision and technology. But it is not easy to design spaces where aesthetic, functionality and acoustic well-being coexist. “You need a scientific approach. The analysis always stems from objective data: the size of the room, the materials found in it, the number of people it accommodates, and the type of activity that takes place there,” explains Paolo Zucchini. Thanks to specific software and experience gained over the years, the company can simulate how sound behaves in the space and identify the most effective solutions. It is a task that combines technology, design and an eye for aesthetics. “Soundproofing products today are no longer simple technical panels. They can become design elements such as fabrics, artistic panels, sofas or integrated solutions that become part of the furnishings,” points out Gianni Zucchini. There is a wide scope of application and it encompasses contexts that can be very different. Open spaces, conference rooms, restaurants, canteens and commercial spaces. Each environment requires different solutions. “A canteen is very different from a meeting room or a restaurant. They have characteristics involving different heights, sizes, systems and types of activities. Yet the principle remains the same - improving the quality of sound means improving the quality of life within those spaces,” stress the two brothers. An issue that has a direct effect on concentration, productivity and people’s well-being. A study conducted in Ferrara high schools proved how, in spaces characterised by a high level of reverberation, students miss up to 50% of the information communicated by their teachers. This is where the value of the project lies: not just providing products, but building integrated solutions. “Technical consultancy is essential. We carry out inspections, collect data and develop customised analyses. It is the only way to identify the most suitable solution for each space.” The approach combines commercial, design and technical skills. From the architect who develops the project, to the technician who installs the systems, down to the coordination of the different professionals involved. If we look to the future, the challenge is mostly a cultural one. “Europe is already introducing directives on the topic of acoustics in indoor spaces. Our objective is to raise market awareness on this issue.” Because acoustic comfort is not just a detail, but an essential element for quality in spaces. After all, nowadays you cannot see actual comfort - you can feel it.
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