ICG RenaisScience Hub

A true renaissance of ceramics through scientific research

The image features a composition divided into two main sections highlighting contemporary architecture and material design. On the left, a modern outdoor terrace shows light-colored flooring with wide curved joints, enriched by raised wooden planters containing grasses and green shrubs. In the background, buildings with glass curtain walls and panels echoing marble textures are visible. On the right, the image focuses on a close-up detail of a stoneware or marble surface with intense, natural veining in shades of gray, brown, and white. Next to this texture, a dark wall features the "ICG RENAISSCIENCE HUB" logo, accompanied by a bilingual text (Italian and English) describing the hub as an innovative R&D center created in partnership with the Politecnico di Milano. The overall composition conveys an image of technological excellence, sustainability, and aesthetic rebirth in the field of ceramics and design.

ICG RenaisScience Hub, the research center of Iris Ceramica Group, was inaugurated on Friday, June 21 in Castellarano. This innovative and interdisciplinary R&D hub, unique in the industry, was developed in collaboration with the Department of Design.

As part of the ICG LogiPack research project, funded by the Ministry of Enterprises and Made in Italy through the Innovation Agreements, the new technological and scientific ICG RenaisScience Hub has been created, a pioneering and cutting-edge space where science applies to ceramics to develop innovative projects and solutions.

The project represents a concrete example of Iris Ceramica Group's mission: to reengineer ceramics to enhance the interaction between humans and the environment.

The Innovation Hub will aim to develop integrated solutions in ceramics and for ceramics, with a particular focus on logistics and packaging systems, exploring the new paradigms of Industry 5.0.

Due to its nature as an innovative research center, access to the Hub is restricted to a select team of internal multidisciplinary experts, particularly the solution engineers of Iris Ceramica Group led by Claudio Bizzaglia, Project Management & Engineering Director, along with a group of researchers from Polifactory coordinated by Professor Stefano Maffei, Laboratory Director and Rector’s Delegate for Social Innovation.

The image shows the main entrance of a modern building, featuring sliding glass doors branded with the "ICG RENAISSCIENCE HUB" logo. Through the transparent glass, one can glimpse an elegant interior with walls clad in stoneware or marble slabs with dark, natural veining, consistent with the design seen in previous shots. Outside, a dark wooden planter holds lavender and rosemary plants, while a lush green shrub in the foreground adds a touch of freshness to the composition. The architecture reflects a clean, professional aesthetic, typical of a cutting-edge research and innovation center.
a portion of the exterior facade of the ICG RENAISSCIENCE HUB, characterized by a minimal and refined aesthetic. The wall is entirely clad in large white stoneware or marble slabs with delicate gray veining, echoing the classic style of Calacatta or Statuario marble. The technological hub's logo stands out in black at the center, accompanied at the bottom left by the "ACTIVE Surfaces" branding, suggesting the use of eco-active and sustainable materials. The structure is completed by functional architectural elements in white metal, such as a micro-perforated mesh at the top and a horizontal slatted grille at the bottom, lending a sense of lightness and a contemporary industrial touch to the building.

The ICG RenaisScience Hub, as its name suggests, aims to promote a true renaissance of ceramics through scientific research. The foundation of the project to create an innovative space dedicated exclusively to industrial experimental research lies in an approach to the material that goes beyond the traditional perspective. Ceramics are treated as an intelligent material, thus surpassing the concept of an inert material or finished product, paving the way for technological advancements and interpretations that have been unexplored until now.

With over 800 square meters, the Hub is divided into four different research areas:

  • Digital Design
  • Electronic Design
  • Digital Manufacturing e Making
  • Factory Testing Lab
The image shows a modern and minimalist interior, characterized by a refined aesthetic that balances warm tones and industrial materials. At the center of the scene is a kitchen or break area with full-height slatted wood cabinetry, interrupted by a dark marble functional niche. In front of it, a high island table with a light wood top and black metal frame is accompanied by matching stools. The floor is made of polished concrete with a matte finish that softly reflects the ambient light from several black industrial pendant lamps. On the left, a large Strelitzia nicolai plant in a gray pot adds a vibrant, natural element to the room. The focused lighting and dark walls create an intimate yet professional atmosphere, typical of a high-end showroom or office space.
The image shows a sophisticated modern meeting room enclosed by large glass walls, creating a sense of continuity with the surrounding space. Inside, a long sculptural table is surrounded by elegant velvet chairs in a blue-grey hue, arranged with formal order. In the background, large windows frame a picturesque view of the hilly landscape, allowing natural light to illuminate the room and creating a dialogue between interior architecture and the outdoor territory. The atmosphere is professional and serene, enhanced in the foreground by a large ornamental plant that adds an organic note to the office's clean, contemporary design.

The ICG RenaisScience Hub is a space that fosters collaboration between Iris Ceramica Group, research centers, businesses, and professionals from various sectors and disciplines, such as design, engineering, and logistics, with the aim of creating solutions that improve people's quality of life.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony on June 21 was attended by the Mayor of Castellarano, Giorgio Zanni, alongside Federica Minozzi, CEO of Iris Ceramica Group, and Professor Stefano Maffei representing the Department of Design.

«ICG RenaisScience Hub represents a true revolution in the ceramic sector and redefines the boundaries of innovation through the integration of digital, electronic, and advanced production technologies. In this context, close collaboration between the company and academia is crucial to fuel innovation. By combining academic expertise with industrial know-how, we aim to pave the way for new technological applications and innovative interpretations of ceramic materials, pushing their creative and functional limits to achieve increasingly ambitious results.»
(Stefano Maffei, Director of Polifactory)


The ICG RenaisScience Hub project, like ICG LogiPack, was realized through the establishment of a medium to long-term strategic partnership coordinated by the Fondazione Politecnico di Milano. This partnership develops joint and multidisciplinary innovation projects at national and European levels.


Iris Ceramica Group is a world leader in the design, production and distribution of high-quality porcelain products for residential, commercial and industrial architecture.
A group that is identified by its talents and that combines the excellence of products made in Italy worldwide.

Polifactory is the makerspace – Fab Lab of Politecnico di Milano. New design and digital manufacturing processes are experimented within this space, developing research on technologies and production/distribution models of circular transition in contemporary product-service systems. It is involved in competitive research at the national and European levels, developing consultancy projects with institutions and companies.

Share on: