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Sustainable construction

The environment and sustainable building are at the core of Bouygues Construction’s strategy. This major issue of our time is at the centre of our concerns and the key challenge our teams face. We build, of course, but our focus is on sustainable building in cooperation with industrial companies, associations and institutions, always with the same goal: building for the long-term by providing solutions to the future users of our buildings or amenities and preserving natural resources.

Sustainable construction

When cities overheat

Urban overheating is becoming a recurring phenomenon, resulting from the cumulative effect of climate change and the Urban Heat Island (UHI) phenomenon. Climate change is leading to an increase in the intensity and duration of heat waves (hot air masses causing high temperatures for several consecutive days) in different parts of the world. These meteorological phenomena themselves reinforce the UHI, a climatic effect causing a difference in temperature between the centre of urban areas and outlying or natural areas, which can be greater than 10 °C during heat waves. The effect is even more pronounced at night, when the heat stored by artificialised land and buildings is released into the air, keeping the temperature high. Faced with the various consequences (social, environmental, economic) and climate projections, local and regional authorities are now faced with the need to adapt their cities in order to combat this phenomenon. Below is an overview of the challenges and solutions.

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Sustainable construction

Sustainable construction – a return to straw?

Straw is increasingly becoming a part of the construction sector due to its low cost and great insulating properties. This return to basics is also driven by a desire to build in a more environmentally friendly way. This renewable insulating material has a lot going for it, including being a better circular economy solution and having a low carbon footprint, even though it requires some guidance in and care over its use.

Crédit Shutterstock
Human stories

What paradigm for Green Cities?

In June 2020, eight major French cities saw their municipal councils taken or held by a Green majority: Lyon, Strasbourg, Bordeaux, Grenoble, Tours, Annecy, Besançon and Poitiers. What do these green municipalities plan for the territories?

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Sustainable construction

Strategies for resilient real estate: interview with Camille Gautier, innovation leader at Elan

Without denying the ostensibly anxiety-provoking prospects anticipated by scientists, it proposes keys to designing a liveable and desirable future: knowing and reducing one’s vulnerabilities, learning to react to unknown phenomena, applying principles of continuity, redundancy and sobriety. How can we implement this concept and develop a methodical and operational resilience strategy at the scale of real estate projects? Insights from Camille Gautier, Innovation Leader at Elan.

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Sustainable construction

Can solar panels meet the carbon challenge?

To combat global warming, France has committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2050. Like France, many countries around the world have decided - by choice or environmental necessity - to turn to decarbonised electricity. In this quest for green energy, photovoltaics seems to have its full place, but is not the only viable solution. Incidentally, what is the status of its deployment potential?

Sustainable construction

Teleworking: less travel, less carbon?

When health conditions required the widespread use of teleworking – wherever possible – in 2020, the sudden drop in travel, especially by car, was obvious to everyone. Some have been quick to conclude that teleworking has a beneficial impact on the environment. But what are the real effects of teleworking on mobility, and as consequence, on the carbon footprint of occupational activities?

Sustainable construction

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 ?

Sustainable construction

Cities Are Taking Steps to Become Carbon Neutral

Responsible for 67% of global GHG emissions, cities are on the front line of this challenge. Two high-emissions sectors - transport and construction - are of direct concern to them. What are their margins of manoeuvre and trajectories to become low carbon and carbon neutral? What are the major assets of the local scale?

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