OUR APPROACH

With 40 years of experience as a founding partner of CPVA Arquitectes, and with the contribution of new generations, we are beginning a new path at Prat Arquitectes, based on teamwork and multidisciplinary collaboration. Our goal is to combine technical expertise, creativity, eco-efficiency, and sustainability to meet our clients’ needs. We do so with the belief that architecture can transform our surroundings, generate collective well-being, and act as a tool for social, cultural, and environmental change—while also contributing to a more resilient future in the face of the climate challenge.

Our professional practice spans various fields of architecture and urban planning. From single-family and multi-family housing to sociocultural and educational facilities, we also bring extensive experience in the healthcare and hospital architecture sector.

Response to the climate crisis

 
Community center for the elderly, Palaudàries

Architecture must respond to the climate crisis through passive design and efficient climate strategies. This requires a transformation in the way we design, build, and renovate, promoting a more respectful relationship with the environment. Integrating elements such as natural ventilation, sunlight, or thermal mass from the initial design stage helps reduce energy consumption. In the face of environmental challenges, architecture plays a key role in the ecological transition, offering simple, efficient, and long-lasting constructive solutions. Conscious and responsible design thus becomes an essential tool for improving the built environment and protecting the planet’s future.

Harmonizing city and nature

Sant Joan de Deu's health center, Sant Boi de LLobregat

Architecture must mediate between the built and natural environments, integrating buildings into the landscape —both urban and natural— through landscaping principles and respect for the context. The boundary between city and nature should be understood as a transitional zone, where public space, vegetation, and topography create continuity and promote coexistence.

Designing with sensitivity to place, adapting to the climate, the land, and social dynamics, makes it possible to build more sustainable, resilient, and livable environments. In this way, architecture stops being an isolated object and becomes an active part of a shared landscape.

Identity and the value of the built heritage

Knowledge building.Renovation of the old Granollers Asylum.

The importance of rehabilitation and repurposing as tools for transforming already built architecture, with two clear premises: promoting eco-efficiency in construction and protecting the value and cultural identity of established heritage within the urban fabric.

Prioritizing people's well-being

Elderly home in Montornès del Vallès

Regardless of the building type, the design must always stem from the concept of dwelling. The goal is to create comfortable, welcoming spaces designed from the perspective of the users who will live in them.

This approach defines clear working parameters: visual quality, material selection, natural light management, thermal comfort, and cost efficiency in construction and maintenance. All of this contributes to generating spaces that promote well-being and meet the real needs of people.

A multi-disciplinary approach to architecture

Photovoltaic pergolas of the Local Police building in Blanes

Nowadays, architecture cannot be understood without constant collaboration between different disciplines and specialties. To create high-quality projects, it is essential to integrate the voices of various experts. This collaboration allows for a global and innovative approach to challenges, ensuring efficient, sustainable, and context-adapted designs. Cooperation between professionals enriches each phase of the project, creating spaces that respond to both human and environmental needs.

Examples of this practice include landscaping solutions, low-impact installations, and energy optimization through new technologies and materials.

Mindful of our clients' needs

House in Les Franqueses del Vallès

Our ultimate commitment is always to address the needs of our clients, transforming their ideas into buildings that meet their expectations. We work closely with each client to understand their desires and requirements, offering solutions designed to enhance functionality, minimize future construction and maintenance costs. Always keeping in mind and thinking from the perspective of each of the aforementioned ideals.

Joan Prat Aguilar

Born in Granollers in 1956, he graduated from the School of Architecture of Barcelona. He collaborated with various studios until, in 1985, he founded the firm CPVA Arquitectes with two other partners. He is now starting a new professional chapter with Prat Arquitectes.