jean mermoz high school

AFEX Grand Prix 2012 for French Architecture worldwide LAUREATE summary

THE NEW JEAN MERMOZ HIGH SCHOOL 2 Urban context 3 EFFICIENT ARCHITECTURE 4 Part of the city 7 The place of empty spaces 7 Colours 8 ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICS 10 Bio-climatic architecture 10 Construction : the ambition of simplicity 12 Water treatment 13 CLIENT, ARCHITECT, COMPANY 14 Quality in relation 14 Client 14 Design team 16 DATA SHEET 18 THE NEW JEAN MERMOZ As a new experience of bio-climatic HIGH SCHOOL architecture on an urban scale, the constructions and their implementa- tion are a result of a highly contextual initiative based on local resources to September 2006. The TERRE- develop solutions which are adapted NEUVE entry, with A. YEDID and to the know-how which can be mobi- ARCHITECTURE & CLIMAT, wins lised in Senegal today. Aware of envi- the first prize in the architectural ronmental issues in a country where design competition, organised by priorities are still often elsewhere, this AEFE (Agency for French Educa- shared initiative is also the result of a tion Abroad), to rebuild the Jean fruitful dialogue between the architects Mermoz French high school. and the client. Indeed, since the esta- blishment of its real estate department in 2005, AEFE has initiated a new ap- September 2010. After two years proach to contracting authority with a of construction, the high school strong wish to include local potential. opens the doors of its new buil- AEFE, contracting authority for French dings: 17,000 m², to welcome education establishments abroad, is 2,400 pupils – from nursery school very pleased that the completion of the to baccalaureate degree – teachers high school – which AEFE considers and administrative staff,while exemplary both as concerns its relation awaiting delivery, in 2011, of sports with the architects and its relation with equipment installed in the area the building company – coincides with where the old prefabs used to be. the 20th anniversary of its establish- ment as an EPA (public administrative March 2012. The AFEX Grand body). Prix 2012 for French Architecture worldwide is awarded to the new Phase 2, the construction of the sports Jean Mermoz high school. facilities where the old prefab buildings used to be is in progress and is com- pleted in the course of 2011.

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1. aerial view June 2010 before the demolition of the prefabs of the old high school 2 2. Ouakam district

2 3 Urban context

The Mermoz high school is located in enclosed and hardly visible from the the Ouakam district, along the wes- urban area. Thanks to its size, the site tern coast road of the Dakar peninsu- can also welcome the French commu- la. The new buildings replace the old nity in case of crisis. The project tends high school, provisionally built in 1994 to minimize the nuisances imposed on from precarious prefabricated modular the environment nearby and in parti- constructions yet benefitting from a hi- cular on the existing urban networks. ghly appreciated vegetal environment. Traffic and parking of school buses and private cars take place within the scho- The school complex welcomes pupils ol boundaries; There is no signposting from nursery school level to bacca- nor anticipation: the environmental laureate level. It includes an adminis- preoccupations which regulated the trative unit and common facilities such project as from its competition phase as a documentation centre, a school find here their daily applications within restaurant, a movable seating mul- their ecological, economic and urban ti-purpose hall for different events, a contexts. gymnasium and sport facilities. The French high school has particular rela- tions with the surrounding district and there are only two points of contact with the city. It is almost completely

Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 3 EFFICIENT ARCHITECTURE The building of the French high school of Dakar is realized in a new political context where budget restrictions force us to think differently. This strong programme restraint constituted a lever for the project’s sustainable development challenges. In using local resources and know-how to limit imported techniques and products, the project focused not only on territorial and environmental cohesion but also on economic and social cohesion. The project also wanted to highlight that an alternative to Dakar real estate production, which transposes more often than not an international architecture, very much dissociated from the Senegalese context, could exist…It was once more in this spirit of adapting to the country throughout the studies that a Senegalese construction company, GE, awarded the contract to build the high school.

4 5 Inseparable from architectural concept, the common spaces, administration, the environmental steps were taken documentation centre, multi-purpose progressively. As from the competi- hall, restaurant, gymnasium in a com- tion it was our aim to transcend the position governed by the circulation of objectives of simplicity and functional the trade winds. The solar protection efficiency of the programme to reach of this entity defines, by means of a a specific architecture: contemporary unifying protective roof, the physiogno- in its form, economical in its cost and my of the project as concerns class- autonomous in its functioning. room buildings which have galleries on one side – indispensable for traditional « The nature of the materials, the at- tropical architecture – and double ven- mospheric variations (sun, wind, rain, tilating walls. dust, temperature differences) are per- manent architectural conditions » said As a spatial conceptual consequence Auguste Perret. there is a rich ambiguity which charac- terises the project between the interior It is this fundamentally architectural ba- and the exterior, offering pupils and sis which determines the composition, teachers full space for education or for the nature of spaces and architectural leisure. applications. We immersed ourselves climatically, socially, culturally but more so in the field of bio-climatic architec- ture, for example the experiments of André Ravéreau in North or Lau- rie Baker in India.

The general design connects with un- dulating strips the classrooms with

Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 5 EFFICIENT ARCHITECTURE

cite scolaire jean-mermoz a dakar, senegal terreneuve

entree eleves maternelle esplanade lycee/college

elementaire bcd administration cdi salle polyvalente

restaurant gymnase plateau sportif entree personnel

plan masse 6 7 Part of the city The place of empty spaces Cap Vert peninsula. A large roof covers the common spaces of the high school, As the importance of the programme The intertwining of the empty spaces administration, documentation centre, imposes a certain function repetiti- and the full ones, as can be seen on restaurant and gymnasium but also veness, spatial organisation relies on the ground plan, generates numerous connecting cross-sectional pathways. empty spaces to offer differentiated transition spaces between the different Taking into account the climate, all the paths. As in cities, the variety of em- equipment entities. The implantation paths are outside, as full living spaces, pty spaces, obtained by the flexible of education buildings in narrow strips architectural promenades and solar fragmentation and articulation of the creates shady interspaces, elongated protections. Rocks, vegetation, ground buildings takes precedence over the and narrow patios open at the ends and surface materials design are also an in- constructive uniformity. Limiting the refreshed by the plantations the shape tegrated part of the project, as are the school to 2 levels and the high school of which fosters air circulation. Cross- sun-shading devices and the vegetated to 3 levels authorises greater proximity sectional connecting passageways playground-pergolas with bougain- of the buildings and conciliates the hu- interrupt this linear geometry and pro- villea and other tropical plants. man and urban scales. vide perspectives of the city, the sky and the Mamelles, the only relief of the

Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 7 EFFICIENT ARCHITECTURE

Colours

Solar protection and facade constitution led to dense and deep colours for the exterior, visually comfortable since there is little reflection. The choice of colours, made with the participation of the Catalan plasticist Miquel MONT, is based on the different shades of laterite which is omnipresent in Dakar and which reinforces the 1 links with the region. A prome- nade therefore features colour sur- prises which punctuate and signal identifiable spaces.

Couleurs

Thoughts on the colour treatment the environment, led to the choice of a of the Jean Mermoz high school in dense and reddish colour range, inspi- Dakar. Miquel Mont, October 2010. red by the local soil, notably laterite.

The choice of colours was focused on a Three main tints, T1, T2 and T3 were range which was coherent with the de- implemented for the facades and com- sign and the spirit of the project. It was bined with other colours chosen for necessary to distinguish in a subtle way the paths, passageways, staircases. A the different buildings and the patios light grey, T0, was chosen for the pas- linked to the passageways of the whole sageways to create a plastic and spatial high school while maintaining a global contrast between the façade and the 1. high school corridors view of the other areas of the project: paths. 2. primary school documentation centre, multi-purpose hall, restaurant, administration. However, this application principle was 3. high school occasionally adjusted in order to com- 4. restaurant The wish not to adhere to a western bine readability and plastic quality by interpretation of the project, the hard attempting to aid spatial awareness as 5. documentation centre and strong light of the country, as well much as a sensual surface reading. 6. nursery school as the wish to integrate the colours into

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T1 T2 T3 In specific instances such as the admi- ning of each colour, subject to the area nistration patio the following principle particularities: orientation, its situation was applied: distinguish the space by within the entity, its light… giving it by means of colour a symbolic quality which is different from the other One colour is not in itself better than Miquel Mont was born in 1963 in Barcelona. project areas. The tint selected, more another one, it simply makes more He lives and works in Paris since 1988. “sober” and “neutral” than the façade, sense when it participates in this com- His work investigates the elementary communicates with the effects of the plex focus on the environment which components of painting: the matter, the T1, T2 and T3 colours which are reflec- it receives and for which architecture colour, the gesture... within a large concept, ted inside the offices on wall sections. is not the sole responsible aspect. It is in this way that it may bring extra qua- often outside the scope of painting. The limited interventions inside the lities to a project and attempt thus to His work was on display at FRAC ALSACE classrooms, staircases, documenta- confirm a colour concept which- rein in 2008, at CRAC in Sète in 2009… at the tion centre or multi-purpose hall follow forces its coherence. KunsthalleBohüslands Museum in Sweden these two principles: coherence of the and his work is part of public collections required range where each colour must in (FNAC, FRAC Bretagne, FRAC function visually with the entity even if Picardie, FRAC Corse…) and abroad they are not next to all the others. And (Belgacom, La Caixa, Banque d’Espagne…). secondly, the logic of spatial positio-

Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 9 ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICS Bio-climatic architecture The classrooms are ventilated by natu- ral convection: inwards opening win- The positioning of the buildings in re- dows in the double wall facades, shut- lation to each other generates micro- ters on the passageway side which also climates in the patios conductive to ensure anti-intrusion and allow the pre- the natural refreshing of the interior All the environmental measures mises to cool down during the night. spaces. The tradewinds, particular to were developed as integral parts the Dakar oceanic climate, justifies of the project, within the scope of the linear and tight organisation of the an environmentally responsible built structures which amplifies the ef- initiative, without labels nor cer- fect of the breezes and which increases tifications but in the noblest and the impression of freshness. The sha- strictest sense: constructive, eco- ding given by the constructions limits nomical, social and cultural. not only the heating of the walls but also of the outside ground.

All the roofs are high inertia; all the classrooms2 have through-openings and generous natural lighting in line with solar protection, also aided by comfortable free heights. The use of air conditioning, required in the project brief, is thus limited to some months a year, during “hivernage” (hot and wet season, from June to October). Lastly, 1 solar panels for domestic hot water and photovoltaic lanterns for outside Each building benefits from a combi- traffic complete the concept aimed at nation of several passive solutions for reducing expenses and energy. solar protection and refreshment while maintaining natural lighting and acous- This result is achieved by essentially tic comfort. On the facade in front of very simple means, and therefore eco- the classrooms galleries and protec- nomically and easily transferable to Se- tive roofing stop the sun’s impact on negal. the facades at the hottest hours. On the rear facade ventilated double walls stop the heating up of the inner walls and constitute thick walls and window casements which limit direct sunlight. This empty space between facades also facilitates the installation of technical columns.

1. double ventilated wall air chaud 2. corridor

3. section on teaching buildings 4. high school 3

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Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 11 ENVIRONMENTAL SPECIFICS The Dagana experience The Célestin Freinet experimental school project, built in 2006-2011 at Dagana, northern Senegal, on the Mauritanian border, designed by the architects of Association REUNION-DAGANA, Nelly Breton, Olivier Fraisse and Philippe Delannoy, already applies the principles of bio-climatic construction with a great economy of means; € 150/m² NFA, a site without machine nor electricity. This first construction experience in Senegal, within the framework of a volunteer community partnership, allowed the architects to develop bigger scale solutions for the lycée Mermoz project.

Construction: the ambition of simplicity

With the exception of some work carried out with shuttered concrete, the buildings are built using blockwork and floor hourdis. Local know-how has also been used for the finishing trades: braided grills and guardrails metal work, basalt cobble esplanade, shell concrete gallery floor, paint on exterior plaster. The architecture of this project is aimed at the right note, at sound agreements and at the spatial richness in simplicity so that the project takes its place sustainably in the city. 1

1. high school playground 2. coach station access 2 3 3. high school patio

12 13 Water treatment the heavy rainfalls in winter by means of a flow restriction system resulting Waste water in temporary water storage on the ter- An autonomous treatment plant was races. At the foot of the buildings the installed to recycle all the waste water. water, channeled through big open ver- This gives the high school total auto- tical drip profiles, flows into draining nomy and the water is used to water tanks consisting of several layers of ba- the green spaces. Plants which do not salt aggregate and laterite associated require a lot of water were selected with drains. among the local flora so that extra wa- This consequently led to the near- tering would not be necessary. autonomous management of waste discharges and to greatly decreased Rainwater consumption in satisfactory comfort. Rainwater was also dealt with in a par- ticular way, including the infiltration of a great deal of water to limit discharges to the urban undersized and hardly ef- ficient water supply systems. The roofs are designed for slow run-off during

Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 13 CLIENT Relational quality Client DESIGN TEAM With this operation the client wanted AEFE (Agence pour l’Enseignement to initiate a new building approach Français à l’Etranger, Agency for French abroad and, as from the project brief, Education Abroad) is a public adminis- expressed objectives of contextua- trative body responsible for the stee- lity and simplicity. This initiative was ring and coordinating of the network confirmed all along the process by of French education establishments deviating from previous habitual prac- abroad which includes 461 establish- tices, specifically in Africa. ments approved by the Ministry of Na- tional Education. This relationship with Senegal led first of all to the composition of the team In view of the need to foresee impor- which associated, as from the compe- tant investments (upgrading and ex- tition, architects and French and Sene- tending existing installations) and the galese consultant engineers. The same difficulty for the Ministry of Foreign Af- applied to the devolution of works fairs to ensure funding, AEFE acquired contracts and the restricted tender real estate know-how in 2005 and set procedure resulted in the end in the up its own real estate services. choosing of the Senegalese construc- tion company GE, established in Da- Since that date AEFE has embarked kar. This company won the tender after on an important number of construc- negotiations and tender specifications tions and renovations totalling about € which allowed allthe companies to 240m over 6 years. The Dakar project comprehend fully, withequal opportu- is one of the most important opera- nity, the complexity and scope of the tions. Other operations were delivered project. Taken into account the extent in 2009/2010 (Munich, Ankara, Ho Chi of work and tight timeframe, speci- Minh Ville) or are being carried out (Al- fic rules were put into place, both as giers, Amman, Cairo, Frankfurt, etc.). concerns the client and the architect. In setting up its projects, AEFE ensures The large local involvement of the several objectives: client AEFE led to a sole operation su- - prioritise mixed architect teams pervisor during the project, established consisting of a French component and in Dakar and later in Rabat and the de- a local component, legation of the operational and finan- cial contract management to the high - develop projects which require the school team. country’s know-how and which are car- ried out by local companies, The strengtheningof the architect’s - promote project environmental di- appointment during the construction mension while maintaining the options phase by posting a TERRENEUVE ar- adapted to the context of the country, chitect on the spot made it possible to monitor construction documentation - implement local project management and construction with great reactivity to allow remote follow-up and to gua- as ARCHITECTURE & CLIMAT was rantee control of costs and deadlines. more particularly in charge of daily buil- ding site follow-up and part of the buil- ding services reviews. Lastly, Consul- tant Engineers SCO was assigned to assist the company with the building site timetable and supplies.

It is very obvious that the project’s suc- cess can largely be ascribed to the rela- tionship between client, architect and construction company.

14 15 Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 15 CLIENT Project management team - realization of an International city of DESIGN TEAM tapestry and woven at Art, in Aubus- TERRENEUVE architects son, France, museum on the former Established in 2000, the architectural National School of Applied Arts site: consultancy firm TERRENEUVE, Paris, 6 608 m² - € 8M BT is active in the fields of urban planning, - construction of 94 social housing architecture and interior design and units on eight levels in Paris: 9 152 m² furniture for public projects obtained - € 12,275M BT competitively on the open market and for private commissions from institu- - refurbishment of the documenta- tions and individuals. tion centre and graphic arts collection of the Army Museuml in the Hôtel The firm pursues a diversified activity, in des Invalides in Paris, a listed histo- a spirit of continuous renewal, marked rical monument in Paris: 1 090 m² - by the education and career experience € 1,3M BT of the firm’s founders: Nelly Breton, IEP Paris graduate urban planner, then Among its most notable achievements, consultant architect for the Ministry of resulting in awards and publications: Culture, the French Museum Directo- rate from 1999 until 2010 and Olivier - Louise Michel library, Paris 20th dis- Fraisse, educated in particular by Henri trict, Librarian “Livres Hebdo” Prize Tastemain in . Nelly Breton 2011 is also a lecturer of “architecture and - Nursery and PMI (Mother and Child museography” at the University of Bre- Protection unit) Hérold, Paris 19th dis- tagne Occidentale in Quimper. trict, City of Paris, new HQE-certified The TERRENEUVE approach is based (High Environmental Quality) buil- on the examination of the territory, its ding, delivered 2007 resources, its cultures and practices, its ambiguities and contradictions. The agency boasts a pluralist culture which is reflected in the creative dynamism of its team and its know-how.

TERRENEUVE is keenly aware of the current construction preoccupations: environmental performance: ecology and sustainable development with a global view : technical, economic and social. For several years the firm has moreover been involved in urban planning in developing countries and participates in the urban management project workshops of Cergy.

TERRENEUVE is a member of AFEX (association of French Exporting Ar- chitects). Since 2005 its activities have developed on an international scale, especially in tropical zones: Senegal, Mauritania, Kenya, Mayotte…

TERRENEUVE is currently working on the following projects:

- construction of the French diplomatic campus in Nairobi, Kenya: embassy, residence of the ambassador and hou- sing: 3 224 m² - € 6M BT

- construction af a new middle school 1,000 students in Ouangani, Mayotte: 1 1. school yard 8 240 m² - € 17M BT

16 17 Jean Mermoz high school Dakar Senegal 17 DATA SHEET Program Construction of the French high school including nursery school, primary school, middle school and high school, gymnasium and sport facilities area

Address Route de Ouakam BP 32 at Dakar, Senegal

Contracting Authority A.E.F.E. Paris : Pierre Favret, head of real estate, Fleur Petersen / Sophie Chabanon-Pouget, assistants Real antenna of the A.E.F.E. at Rabat : Pierre Labadie, project supervisor www.aefe.fr Jean Mermoz high school, delegate project manager, Dakar. Claude Coulon / Philippe Lagier, principals ; Valère Pozzobon, head of economic and financial services

Assistant to Contracting Authority SCO, Abidjan, Sébastien Dorange, officer in charge of operations

Design team TERRENEUVE Nelly Breton and Olivier Fraisse, representative architects, Paris Thomas Hus (project architect, studies and construction), Alice Levy-Leblond (project architect, competition), Tina Sickert et Jonathan Myara assistant architects, Laurence François, administration and communication www.terreneuve.fr

Adam YEDID, associate architect, Paris Céline Mercier (project architect), Delphine Jaoul (competition) www.adamyedid-archi.com

ARCHITECTURE & CLIMAT, architects D.O. and construction economist in Dakar Mohamadou Gueye, project chief engineer

SATOBA Alain Glotin, D.O. structure / ALTO D.O. fluids and environment Eric Escande, project manager ; Clément Barbier and Fabrice Gillard, engineers / GETRAP Pascal Rousseau, construction economist for architectural items

Consultants : Armelle CLAUDE, landscaper / AYDA Yves Dekeyrel, acoustics expert / Miquel MONT, plastic colorist

Programming POLYPROGRAMME, Paris.

Company GENERALE D’ENTREPRISES - GE, Dakar. Mame Mor Fall, PDG ; Ahmed Mouhamed Dame Lo, technical manager of the company and site manager; Abdoul Ahad Diallo, assistant site manager

1. pool www.generaledentreprises.sn

18 19 Supervising office SCAT Internationale, Dakar. Abdoulaye Sene, officer in charge of operation

Timeline competition: 2006; studies: 2006-2008 construction site: phase 1: school buildings, 2008-2010 / phase 2: sport facilities and gymnasium, 2010-2011

Surfaces 17,000 m² SHON net floor area + 40,000 m² exterior surfaces including 14,500 m² usable area, including half-open covered surfaces

Total cost CFA Franc 1 030 M (€ 15,7 M), 2006 value

Environmental specifics Waste water treatment: autonomous treatment units for green space watering Rainwater infiltration: roof top water retention and draining systems at the foot of the buildings Thermal control: double ventilated walls, natural cross ventilation Solar protection: double walls, protection roofs and passageways, sun-shading devices, vegetated school yards and pergolas Patio climate control between buildings: optimization of air circulation between builfings and planted patio Domestic hot water production: solar panels and solar storage Autonomous solar lamp outdoor lighting

Main products woodwork TECHNAL; tiling Royal Moza and NovoCeram; Etalbond; lighting SAMMODE, SEAE, BEGA, I GUZINI; signage and hardware EUXOS; ...

Award AFEX Grand Prix 2012 for French Architecture worldwide

Photos credits Daniel ROUSSELOT +33 (0)6 61 99 17 34 [email protected]

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all rights reserved © TERRENEUVE architects - november 2014 photos © Daniel Rousselot