About Us

Lucio Visintini

Co-founder / CEO

Patrizia Buzzi

Co-founder / Architect

Roberto Bressan

Architect

Marco Verdi

Acoustic Engineer

Company

Gruppo Concrete Srl was founded in 1988 by Lucio Visintini and Patrizia Buzzi as engineering service provider for architecture, acoustic and plant design in the building industry and in the working environment. The acoustic division of Gruppo Concrete aims particularly at improving acoustic comfort as well as sound and image quality in any life and business context.

Since the very beginning, the company has targeted its services to the development of physical environments where music can be produced and experienced: recording and post-production studios for the music majors, production rooms for broadcast and film industries, auditoriums, cinemas, theatres, etc.

The experience made and the know-how created have enpowered Gruppo Concrete to identify and to interpret the major technical and strategic trends in the media industry in the last two decades, such as the transition towards digital platforms, the introduction of high definition images and multichannel audio.

The presence in one company of all the needed expertise for building (acoustic, construction, building plants and production systems) allows coordinated design in acoustic, visual and architectural planning and their integration in an excellent outcome from the aesthetic point-of-view. This synergy also positively impacts on the quality and the financial profile of the solution.

Gruppo Concrete makes use of powerful software platforms to draw architectural sketches, to plant design, to simulate acoustic impacts; leading platforms are used to support testing and measuring during implementation and acceptance tests.

Key Dates

1988
1993
2001
2003
2005
2007
2011
2016

1988
Design and construction of the first sound recording studio by Lucio Visintini, commissioned by the advertising production company Circle in Milan: UREI speakers, Cadac analog mixing desk, Studer tape recorders… a wonderful (and forgot) world before the digitalization of music.
1993
In «The work of the master builders», Pro Sound News Europe features Lucio Visintini's Concrete as one of the leading acoustic design and consultancy firms in Europe, alongside top consultants like Philip Newell, Andy Munro and Roger Quested. In a year where broadcast, post-production and performance spaces were dominant over music studios as a growth area, this survey gathered 17 of Europe's top companies.
2001
Design of Marinastudios complex near Genoa, at that time one of Europe’s finest post-production and digital mixing studios according to many professionals. First in Europe with THX’s new Pm3 certification for small rooms, Marinastudios was a cutting-edge facility, pioneering multichannel music and Digital Intermediate technology.
2003
At the 10th International Congress on Sound and Vibration in Stockholm, Lucio Visintini presents a research on noise control techniques for using small turbine engines in service ground equipment for military aircrafts. The paper, coauthored with engineer Francesco Attucci, describes the successful results achieved in the design of a noise reduction system for the jet starter P75.
2005
La Bohème by Franco Zeffirelli is the first opera production to be broadcast from the new all-digital control room inside the opera house Teatro alla Scala in Milan, designed by Lucio Visintini for Italy's national broadcaster RAI. A very high-tech audio room in one of the most wonderful theatres in the world.
2007
The Italian Authority for Communications Guarantees (AGCOM) establishes a permanent technical committee for putting an end to the growing chaos of sound levels in TV commercial advertisements. Lucio Visintini took part in the committee representing the large broadcaster Mediaset. An interesting work that anticipated the introduction of ITU loudness control in television broadcasting.
2011
The hush house of Aermacchi has to be adapted to the new M-346 aircraft. Gruppo Concrete is in charge of the renovation: from a single engine detuner-based test cell to an exhaust system with a large opening. In this way, the hush house can host different airplanes, from the old MB-339 to the new M-346 and M-345 HET. It’s the first test cell in the world in which the engines are not aligned with the first part of the exhaust - this was achieved with innovative modelling procedures and uncommon geometrical solutions.
2016
We have moved to a new office: an old villa surrounded by trees near Masnago castle, in Varese. Sustainability, comfort and a beautiful, green landscape outside our windows were the key reasons for moving.

People

Lucio Visintini

Co-founder / CEO

Lucio started his career as acoustic consultant in 1986 and quickly became an applauded designer for music recording studios. In 1988 he co-founded Gruppo Concrete Srl.

In the last twenty years, he designed more than hundred rooms for music and video production, as well as several cinemas and auditoriums. He also works for the aircraft industry and in environmental noise planning. He worked for the largest media and broadcasting companies in Italy (RAI and Mediaset) in the not-easy transition to full digital and high-definition television.

Lucio loves talking and teaching about acoustics - that’s why he is often involved in training and music schools.

Patrizia Buzzi

Co-founder / Architect

Patrizia is an architect, co-founder in 1988 of Gruppo Concrete Srl, where is in charge of the architecture division.

She works on the aesthetic quality of buildings and is responsible for the uniqueness of the design solutions for each customer. Patrizia manages the executive planning design, the material colors and furniture choice and the project implementation; she coordinates suppliers and manufacturers. She is also specialized in buildings for the public administration.

Patrizia is a contract Professor of Technology at the Architecture Department of Politecnico di Milano and member of the National Institute of Urbanism (INU - Lombardia) since 2002.

Roberto Bressan

Architect

Roberto is an architect, graduated in Environmental Architecture at Politecnico di Milano. He has been working with Gruppo Concrete since 2008.

He is responsible for the architectural design and develops 2D/3D drawings and modelling at all project stages. He helps to draft technical reports and calculations, including building acoustics. Roberto has excellent skills in handcrafted architectural models, from landscape to housing. Outside the studio, he supervises construction sites and supports client teams in project development.

Roberto is a licensed architect at Ordine degli Architetti of Varese since 2016 and certified building acoustics technician (TAE) since 2013.

Marco Verdi

Acoustic Engineer

Marco joined the team in September 2014 after graduating with a MSc in Sound and Music Engineering at Politecnico di Milano.

In his thesis, he worked on innovative techniques for acoustic imaging and carried out the acoustical characterization of control rooms for broadcasting, in collaboration with the division of Applied Acoustics at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg.

He is currently focusing on environmental noise assessments, acoustic testing in buildings and reverberation control. He deals with acoustic modelling software, noise prediction methods and technical reports. Marco is certified environmental acoustics technician (TCAA) since 2017.

Our Services

Our services include noise and vibration control, sound insulation advice, room acoustics and reverberation control, building acoustics, environmental noise assessment and more. We are an accredited consulting and can provide testing and certifications requested by Italian national regulations, such as D.P.C.M. 05/12/1997, D.P.C.M. n. 215 16/04/1999, D.Lgs. 81/08. We are based in Varese, near to the Milan area, and we are fully equipped to cover the whole of Italy and beyond.

Noise control & sound insulation

Planning and noise control of industrial plants, design of machinery and production facilities, heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems design for the industrial and civil sectors, noise impact assessments.

Room acoustics & reverberation control

Internal acoustics design for music and media production facilities, classrooms, offices, restaurants and churches, measurement of reverberation and speech transmission index (STI), technological advice for sound reinforcement systems and A/V installations.

Building acoustics

Design and planning of residential buildings, schools, offices, business meeting rooms and corporate cafeterias, measurement and control of building services noise, structural acoustics, environmental noise assessments.

Testing & certifications

Acoustic testing, sound and vibration analysis and measurements, sound power testing of machines and noise emissions certifications, measurement of noise exposure of workers, sound insulation testing, noise mapping.