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Interview of the month: Alexandre Bouvry

4 minutes of reading
Alexandre Bouvry, CATALPA Project Director at Bouygues Entreprises France-Europe, tells us about a sustainable wood-frame modular project that’s being built for the French Defence Infrastructure Service.
l'interview shared innovation

What was the context for the project and what solutions were presented to the owner?

In the aftermath of the terrorist attacks in France in early 2015, the French president decided to increase the size of the military’s land force. In order to create housing for the new recruits as soon as possible, the Defence Infrastructure Service opted for a modular construction method, which is much faster than traditional building techniques. Drawing from its experience in building modular wooden student housing under a framework agreement with CROUS (French public body for student living conditions), the team, which was headed up by Bouygues Bâtiment Sud-Est, submitted its proposal with a plan to build the project using wood. The bid was selected, and the team was contracted to construct buildings at various military sites in France over a four-year period. Employees from all BYEFE operating units are working on the project. They are assembled and coordinated through a supervisory office based out of Lyon. Currently, 17 buildings have already been delivered, three are under construction, and a dozen others are being designed.

What are the specific features and advantages of modular construction with respect to this project?

Prefabrication means projects can be built very quickly. It also increases productivity. It takes only 6 to 7 months to complete the design phase, prefabricate the modules, assemble them on-site, and deliver the project— all for a lower cost in terms of both capital and labour than traditional building methods. From an environmental perspective, this method generates less waste because the modules are custom designed to meet the project’s requirements and prefabricated in a factory before being transported to the construction site. Because the modules are built inside a factory, the builders can deliver a consistent level of industrial quality throughout the year. The use of wood reduces carbon emissions and makes the resulting modules easier to transport because of their lighter weight. The buildings also offer exceptional air-tightness and thermal performance that meet the requirements of the French thermal regulation standard RT2012. As a result, the consortium has been able to guarantee the delivered buildings for a duration of 35 years, far beyond the ten years initially requested by the owner.

What are the levers for growth when it comes to modular construction?

The advantages of this building technique are undeniable, but we still have a long way to go. In fact, we’re just scratching the surface in this area. The assembly phase, which includes aligning the outermost layer of the modules, as well as the process of connecting the buildings to water and sewer mains and camouflaging the connectors are sometimes challenging to complete. Because the walls are doubled, these projects might be harder to renovate at a later date. Above all, however, it’s the culture and assumptions associated with traditional building processes that need to change. An encouraging sign is that more and more project owners are considering this method. For example, the French Ministry of Justice and Ministry of the Interior are thinking about ordering buildings for the national police force and the QPS system (a type of halfway house for prisoners serving sentences of less than two years). More widely, modular construction could be used for all types of projects, including offices, housing, managed residences, emergency housing, healthcare centres, schools, etc. The future for modular buildings is bright!