In the contemporary era, civil engineering design is predominantly carried out using software tools that offer significantly reduced operational time due to automatic calculations. However, these tools often require a substantial amount of data input and extensive post-processing of results. In the context of high-rise buildings, the General Algorithm and its software implementation represent a promising solution to this challenge, ensuring a significant improvement in efficiency during both data input and result analysis. The Tall Building Structural System (TaBu) computational code, which implements analytical models within the Matlab environment, despite inherent modelling limitations, has demonstrated its ability to estimate results comparable to those obtained through finite-element (FE) analysis, with deviations often less than 10%. However, in cases involving complex geometries like the Michelucci Tower in Livorno, Italy, the differences can reach 20–30%, due to the simplifications inherent in the analytical approach. Nevertheless, TaBu can be considered a valuable tool for preliminary building analyses, facilitating the subsequent transition to more detailed modelling. The purpose of this study was to compare the horizontal displacements of the high-rise Michelucci Tower estimated using TaBu software (derived from an analytical model) and Dolmen FE software.
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11 March 2026
Research Article|
December 19 2025
The Michelucci Tower in Livorno, Italy
Alberto Carpinteri;
Alberto Carpinteri
Department of Civil Engineering and Intelligent Construction,
Shantou University
, Shantou, China
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Giuseppe Lacidogna;
Department of Structural, Geotechnical and Building Engineering,
Politecnico di Torino
, Turin, Italy
Corresponding author Giuseppe Lacidogna (giuseppe.lacidogna@polito.it)
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Andrea Mamone
Andrea Mamone
Department of Structural, Geotechnical and Building Engineering,
Politecnico di Torino
, Turin, Italy
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Corresponding author Giuseppe Lacidogna (giuseppe.lacidogna@polito.it)
Publisher: Emerald Publishing
Received:
June 16 2025
Accepted:
September 30 2025
Online ISSN: 1751-7672
Print ISSN: 0965-089X
Funding
Funding Group:
- Funding Statement(s): The authors would like to express their sincere gratitude to the Giovanni Michelucci Foundation for granting permission to utilise the archive sources of Grattacielo Roma, Livorno 1956-1966. They also extend their heartfelt thanks to CDM Dolmen - Software di Calcolo Strutturale for their valuable contribution to the structural calculations presented in this study. Finally, the authors are deeply grateful for the sponsorship and financial support provided by Politecnico di Torino, Italy, which made this work possible through basic research funds.
© 2025 Emerald Publishing Limited
2025
Emerald Publishing Limited
Licensed re-use rights only
Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Civil Engineering (2026) 179 (1): 68–83.
Article history
Received:
June 16 2025
Accepted:
September 30 2025
Citation
Carpinteri A, Lacidogna G, Mamone A (2026), "The Michelucci Tower in Livorno, Italy". Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers - Civil Engineering, Vol. 179 No. 1 pp. 68–83, doi: https://doi.org/10.1680/jcien.25.00196
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