Nova Conservação S.A. is a Portuguese company that develops its activity since 1994 in the cultural heritage sector, conducting studies, projects, and small and large conservation-restoration interventions.
Nova Conservação was created, on August 11 1994, by Paola Coghi and Nuno Proença, conservator-restorers with academic training and specialisation obtained in the 1980s at the now called Istituto Centrale per il Restauro, in Rome.
After years of working in Italy on the preservation of cultural heritage, in 1994 they were challenged to bring to Portugal this modus operandi matured by a long institutional tradition, based on an integrated and integrative logic of approaching the conservation of built heritage and historic interiors.
This structured approach to our activity manifests in multiple aspects, notably: the obtaining of a public works permit shortly after the company was created (1994); the registration of the brand ncrestauro®, as part of the company’s internationalisation process (2006); the quality and security certification of our integrated information management system (2009); the celebration of partnerships with foreign institutions to implement a bioconsolidation system in Portugal and Italy (2014); the absence of any serious accidents in 3 decades of uninterrupted activity – exclusively in Conservation-restoration.
Having had the privilege of working since its creation on some of the most important National Monuments – including the Belém Tower and the Jerónimos Monastery –, Nova Conservação soon established itself as a reference company in the Heritage sector in Portugal, and some of our interventions were 
distinguished by organisations such as EUROPA NOSTRA.
Over the past three decades, Nova Conservação has collaborated with public and private, national and international entities, and enriched its experience and knowledge in contact with the most diverse projects, teams and places – from consultancy for the conservation of the Taj Mahal (India), the Colón Theater (Argentina) or the Segovia Aqueduct (Spain); to the implementation of biorestoration solutions in archaeological structures in the United Arab Emirates or the Roman Forum (Italy); from participating in European projects dedicated to the heritage impacts of the climate crisis; to the conservation-restoration of cultural assets of exceptional value, such as the Temple of Neptune, in Paestum (Italy), the Temple of Évora, the Convent of Christ, in Tomar, the Cathedral of Porto or the mural paintings of Almada Negreiros, in Gare Rocha do Conde d’Óbidos Maritime, in Lisbon.
Nova Conservação is exclusively dedicated to conservation-restoration, and therefore our team essentially consists of conservator-restorers holding higher education degrees from national and international educational institutions.
We are a structured organisation, with a permanent and complementary team, which includes both very experienced professionals and young technicians – from different specialties of conservation-restoration and holding knowledge in the traditional crafts; and from architecture and other humanities; most of us with experience and skills in various roles.
We believe that professional growth is a collective endeavour, pillared in a balance between continuity and renewal – and for sharing their knowledge and skills throughout the years, we would like to express our heartfelt thanks to all who worked in Nova Conservação, or otherwise collaborated or collaborate with us.
Conservator-restorer, Partner, Administrator
Conservator-restorer, Partner
Architect
Degree in Languages, Training in Auditing
Law graduate
Conservator-restorer, Partner
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
Conservator-restorer
We invest in partnerships with national and international institutions linked to higher education and research, as well as with companies, in the search for solutions – techniques, products and/or equipment – scientifically anchored in the research of reference organisations in the field of cultural heritage conservation.
Experimentation and know-how transfer are critical components of our activity, supporting a constant search for innovative solutions.
Our participation in research and development projects allows us to collaborate in the design and/or operationalisation of methodologies, products and technologies specifically aimed at the conservation sector; notable examples including:
In 2014 we invested in biorestoration, implementing the Granada biomineralisation system for the consolidation of selected historical monuments in Portugal – e.g. the Carmo Convent, the Parish Church of Loulé and the Sanctuary of Fátima – and in Italy – e.g. in the Arch of Septimius Severus. With the scientific support of entities such as LNEC (PT) and the Istituto Centrale per il Restauro (IT), it was possible to demonstrate that the consolidation of carbonate stones and renders by carbonatogenic microorganisms is a compatible, sustainable and highly durable process.
Between 2016 and 2019 we were partners of the Horizon 2020 STORM project, dedicated to the development of solutions, strategies and tools for preventing and mitigating the impacts of the climate crisis and natural disasters on cultural heritage.
Portfolio: R&D
