La Serra Complex, Olivetti, Ivrea

Adriano Olivetti was a man ahead of his time. He believed that meaningfully improving the lives of his workforce was the right thing to do and would make his company, Olivetti a world-leading brand, more successful. Even today the innovations Adriano introduced remain the ideal. Decent staff housing, a nursery, social facilities, green spaces and art were introduced at the Olivetti factory in Ivrea, a small town near Turin where Camillo, Adriano’s father, was born. At one time a large portion of Olivetti’s 14,000 strong Italian workforce lived in the town.

Much of the original factory estate no longer exists but we can still get the flavour of Adriano’s vision from La Serra Complex even though much that remains lies abandoned.