Special feature
The return of eco-materials
Report produced by Open Up, Bouygues Construction's Lab Prospective,
in partnership with We Demain
9+
Prospective topic
Setting up a regional resilience programme
In late 2020, Bouygues Construction, Banque des Territoires and Chronos (an urban innovation consulting firm), with the support of France Ville Durable, held a retreat to discuss the topic of setting up a regional resilience programme. Using an array of assessment tools and regional initiatives, the attendees identified the key factors needed to formalise a regional resilience programme. France Ville Durable, Cerema, AEME, the French High Committee for National Resilience, the Paris Région Institute and the Grenoble Urban Planning Agency spoke of the dedication shown by those involved in this subject, and animated discussions on how to formalise the concept of regional resilience.
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Will the new silk road change the world?
Since 2013, China’s Belt & Road Initiative (BRI), also referred to as the New Silk Road, has been building a network to connect China with the rest of the world, with railways, highways, ports, airports, industrial areas, data centres and telecommunication networks. As part of this strategy, China has been financing and building infrastructures in a number of third-world countries in Asia, as well as Africa, the Middle East, Latin America and Europe. Is this New Silk Road about to change the world? Will it be open to everyone or under Chinese control? Is there a place for Europe? Below we consider three fictional and highly distinct scenarios in order to explore various possible futures, some frightening, some fascinating.
Intensifying the use of existing buildings
How do we do more with less? Modern cities are faced with numerous challenges. They need to emit less carbon and halt urban spread into natural areas, while also having enough space to live in social harmony and in line with shifting trends (reconstituted families, telework, etc.). With these contradictory demands—acquiring more space with less sprawl—time becomes an unexpected resource. Some spaces in our buildings are used only for certain times of the day, week or year. For example, educational facilities are generally used around 20% of the time, while offices are used between 30% and 45% of the time. This means they can be used more, by finding new users and new ways to use them. Let’s look at a few concrete examples.
Care homes & hospitals: digitisation for useful, comfortable, sustainable construction
To meet the needs of both patients and healthcare workers, each healthcare site must combine reliability with ease of use. This fact is not always taken into account. This is evidenced by the numerous problems pointed out by users relating to space and practical issues. However, whether in care homes or hospitals, the building can be a valuable asset in taking care of the most vulnerable and allowing health professionals to work in the best possible conditions. This is a major challenge that Bouygues Construction wants to address using digitisation.
Smart homes: the latest on “intelligent” housing
Whether in the interests of comfortable living or to reduce energy consumption in homes, connectivity is increasingly present both in individual housing and multi-unit buildings. An advantageous transformation that might well lead to the embedding of certain technologies in all new housing.
Openness and sharing: sources of value for the world to come…
How to be attractive, create value and be scalable is the challenge for office buildings in order to meet all the complexity of an increasingly pressurised market. The uses and structure of such buildings require urgent rethinking in order to meet the new expectations of their occupants, as well as health and environmental issues. Solutions exist, but such changes must be anticipated in order to be implemented effectively.
Will the city of the future run on hydrogen?
Hydrogen has been put forth as a critical "green" energy solution in the next decades. Between public and personal transport, power production and storage, the innovations are proliferating around the world to make hydrogen a central part of our daily lives.
What role can bicycles play in the cities of the future?
The COVID-19 pandemic, through the urban planning initiative of "coronavirus bike lanes", has highlighted the return of the bicycle to the city. In reality, this comeback has been under way for many years, though it did get a recent boost. What are the causes? What are the consequences on urban planning today? What will bicycles in cities look like ?
