Curioni and the experimental measurements on the strength of materials in the Scuola di applicazione per gli ingegneri of Turin

The establishment of the laboratory for the experiences on building materials at the Scuola di applicazione per gli ingegneri of Turin dates back to 1879. It is the result of the untiring activity carried out by professor Giovanni Curioni in the search of tools useful to combine education and scientific research and to provide concrete support to the theories given in class. The effects of this institution begun to show up from the day after its activation. As soon as the laboratory starts functioning, it becomes the fulcrum of a conspicuous activity of academic, scientific and professional experience, significantly influencing the progress of construction techniques. Since the late sixties of the XIX century, after having provided the Constructions Laboratory with equipment to support his teaching, Curioni expands the collection of tools and instruments designing a machine for testing the resistance of materials according to the most modern specifications. The operation of the machine marks the birth certificate of the experimental laboratory annexed to the Constructions Laboratory of the Politecnico di Torino.