Marchesi Antinori Chianti Classico Winery supported by R&M Solutions

Invisible architecture

Although the winery was built specifically for wine production, the idea was also to offer a wide audience of enthusiasts the opportunity to directly experience the family’s production philosophy. Visitors can see how wine is created, from vineyard to bottle. Step by step, guests are introduced to all stages of fermentation and aging. In addition to showing how wine is made, permanent exhibits also present the Antinori family’s history, art, and food and wine traditions of the region.

Conceptually, the project is based on innovative architecture that enhances the landscape, the surrounding environment, and the cultural and social values of the wine region. The winery is totally in harmony with the landscape. A vineyard covers the entire building, which matches the brownish-red colors of the land and was built with natural materials such as terracotta, wood, corten (an alloy of steel and copper) and glass. The deep connection to the land is reflected in the attention to minimal environmental impact and maximum energy conservation.

Fiber to the winery

In addition to the facilities for wine production and storage, the winery also houses a museum area, restaurant, store and offices. The winery’s offices, previously located in the family palace in Piazza Antinori in central Florence, have also been moved to this rural location. All of these facilities rely on reliable, very high-speed connectivity to function. The systems and technologies used within the innovative facility also follow the philosophy of full integration with the environment, high performance and high quality.

For this project, R&M Italy worked in collaboration with IBM Italy Global Technology Services. R&M contributed to the design, implementation and testing of the cabling infrastructure, relying on copper and fiber optic solutions from R&Mfreenet. The best solution available at the time was proposed, offering lasting performance. The result was a fully customized homogeneous solution with the highest level of quality. R&M ensured that all ratified network services work as expected, including the transfer of 10 Gigabit Ethernet in accordance with IEEE 802.3an 10GBase-T and ISO/IEC 11801.

Miglior partner

The collaboration between the two partners on cabling networks began in the early 1990s and has proven to be highly successful, reliable, and effective. Initially, R&M acted as a cabling supplier under a manufacturing framework agreement, gradually becoming a strategic partner for connectivity solutions. Today, R&M Italia provides connectivity and cabling infrastructure services for data centers, offices, industry and telecommunications through a solution engagement agreement with IBM Italia. Services provided to IBM Italia include assessment, site survey, design, delivery, installation, project management, link certifications, maintenance, support and training. Satisfaction levels are high for both parties, and R&M Italia is ranked as one of the best partners in IBM’s vendor evaluation program.

IBM’s Francesco Bugelli says, “Special thanks to Reichle & De-Massari, whom I have known and worked with since 1994. Based on my personal experience, I know for a fact that they are the best partner I have encountered in Italy, in terms of reliability, availability, competence and quality!”