GRDF Headquarters

Taking account of the constraints imposed by its environment, it triggered a thought process concerning how the district’s public space might be changed while at the same time taking steps to reduce environmental impact and using a low-carbon approach to construction supported by circular economy principles. Set on a parcel enjoying an exceptional location in the commune of Saint-Denis, thus making it a highly significant urban landmark at this entrance to the district of La Plaine, this building with a wooden structure is designed on a scale proportionate to the urban fabric into which it is inserted.

The building is composed of sequenced volumes reflecting the various sections of the programme. The business centre is located in the north part, while the south part houses the GRDF head office. On the rue des Bretons and rue des Gazomètres, the building’s sequenced volumes enable discontinuous frontages to be constituted on the street on a scale proportionate with the district, which is composed of many buildings.

The architectural project and the wooden structure project are closely linked. The structural framework, shaped by the regular grid of the wooden construction and legible as a façade, creates a strong cohesion between the building’s exterior aspect and its construction system. The building’s volumes are fragmented by the creation of vertical gaps that generate visual transparencies between street and patio by allowing natural light to reach all the vertical circulations and pleasure spaces (such as the winter garden). Transparently visible from rue des Bretons, the central patio consists of open ground planted with trees with light, luminous foliage.

This new head office thus enables its users to be provided with a very special work setting. The planted terraces, the open-ground garden at the heart of the building and the vegetalised roofs offer special spaces for relaxation while improving the site’s biodiversity.