Campus SUPSI of Mendrisio

Officially inaugurated on 23 April 2021, the SUPSI Campus in Mendrisio is an avant-garde facility with laboratories, ateliers, classrooms, spaces for applied research and quality infrastructures for face-to-face and distance learning. A true 'factory of ideas' under the banner of sustainability.

Designed by architect Andrea Bassi and named Ascensus, the building is emblematic of Ticino architecture. Assembled according to prefabrication principles, it makes materiality a central aspect of the construction. Its red colour evokes terracotta and at the same time an urban idea of interiority.
"The heart of the building is a ramp that gives access to the different functions," explains the architect Bassi. "For us, it is an alpine path, rather than a road or a motorway, which lifts the spirit in the learning process proper to a school.
A concrete architecture, characterised by large transparencies, which allows its inhabitants to have both a visual exchange and a presence.

Home to the Department of Construction Environment and Design, the Campus hosts the Bachelor's degree courses in Architecture, Interior Architecture, Visual Communication, Conservation, Civil Engineering, the Master's courses in Conservation and Restoration, Interaction Design and the Master of Science in Engineering, Civil Engineering profile.

The Department makes use of various research units such as the Design Institute, the Materials and Construction Institute, the Microbiology Institute, the Earth Sciences Institute, the Institute for Applied Sustainability in the Built Environment, the Climate Change and Territory Competence Centre, the SUPSI Co-operation and Development Competence Centre, the Radon Competence Centre, the SUPSI Dynamat Laboratory, the SUPSI PVLab and the SUPSI FabLab.

The Campus is located in the heart of Mendrisio's urban fabric. Adjacent to public transport stations, it encourages sustainable travel and exchange, thus strengthening the link with the local area.