An architecture contest and an antibacterial ceramic slab as two different aspects of a single attitude: the quest for excellence. Issue number 25 of our magazine “Percorsi in Ceramica” will mainly cover these two events, which perfectly depict the work and style of Casalgrande Padana.

Conceived in 1990 with the purpose of selecting and awarding the productions that proved to emphasize the technical properties and expressive potential of Casalgrande Padana’s ceramic elements at best, the international architecture competition “Grand Prix” has progressively seen, edition after edition, a growing use of porcelain stoneware in remarkable works of great architectural interest. Parallel to that, designers have increasingly diversified the use of this material in the different fields of application, using a range of different laying techniques to interpret their artistic views. This evolution of the material and its uses has been accompanied by a similar development in the yearly event, which, year after year, has emphasized its international vocation and played an increasingly primary role also vis-à-vis the institutions, with an increasing visibility that led transformed it into one of the most important cultural events in the architectural ceramic industry.

• CReM "Stefano Ferrari" Regenerative Medicine Centre, Modena, Italy, ZPZ Partners
• CReM "Stefano Ferrari" Regenerative Medicine Centre, Modena, Italy, ZPZ Partners
• CReM "Stefano Ferrari" Regenerative Medicine Centre, Modena, Italy, ZPZ Partners
• CReM "Stefano Ferrari" Regenerative Medicine Centre, Modena, Italy, ZPZ Partners
• CReM "Stefano Ferrari" Regenerative Medicine Centre, Modena, Italy, ZPZ Partners
• CReM "Stefano Ferrari" Regenerative Medicine Centre, Modena, Italy, ZPZ Partners

Characterized by a wide range of application options and creative opportunities, through a great variety of colours, surfaces, formats and decors for numberless compositions, Casalgrande Padana’s porcelain stoneware is the result of a continuous quest for excellence that is reflected both in its outstanding aesthetic qualities and in the high physical-chemical performance levels of this material. Bios ® Antibacterial Ceramics is a clear example of that: this revolutionary line of full body vitrified porcelain stoneware slabs offers the best antibacterial properties, that are obtained with an innovative patented manufacturing process.

Awarded as best product of the year in Germany and selected as example of excellence in the ceramic industry in Ermete Realacci’s book “Green Italy - Perché possiamo farcela”, Bios ® has already been used in several architectural projects, such as the new “Eco-Supermercato inCoop”, designed by the Galassi, Mingozzi e Associati project and research firm, and recently opened in Conselice, near Ravenna.