Wicona joinery in recycled aluminum at the service of 100% natural ventilation at the Marcel Pagnol school in Sénas

Thermal inertia and 100% natural ventilation are among the responses provided by UNIC architecture for the Marcel Pagnol school group, in Sénas, near Avignon. The bioclimatic design of the building in the form of a cloister, protected on the street side and open onto the interior courtyards via galleries, as well as the Wicline 65 windows by WICONA implemented by SMAB, largely contribute to this.

The context: eco-responsible construction

Located north of Avignon on the axis taken by the A7 motorway, Sénas, with around 7.000 souls on the clock, is experiencing regular demographic development.

The nursery and primary schools occupied premises that had become obsolete, each at two ends of the town. "Bringing them together was an opportunity to make life easier for families and to increase the reception capacities in 14 classes", explains Richard Dubreuil, 1st Deputy Delegate for Finance and Calls for Tenders. To do this, “we wanted a school group that was not only safe and comfortable, but also energy-efficient and eco-responsible”.

Winner of the competition, UNIC architecture's proposal appealed for these qualities and a few others. Among them: the layout of the building in the style of a cloister on a single level, the ground floor. Organized around interior courtyards, this mixed concrete and massive stone structure forms a rectangular protective enclosure of 2.200 m2 while integrating into the urban fabric of the village thanks to its compact volume and its exterior facades in (local) Beaulieu stone.

The challenges: safety, thermal inertia and natural ventilation

This architectural bias allows fluid and secure traffic management. Thus, the classes are housed around the perimeter of the "cloister", served by the galleries overlooking the inner courtyard.

The spaces common to the two schools are found in the center.

The building of the multi-purpose rooms divides the interior courtyard in two, thus marking the separation between the courtyard for the young and that for the adults; the other functions are attached to one wing of the building, on the exterior side: the entrances and the administration on the south-east wing, the refectory on the north-west wing.

This composition is added to a bioclimatic design and the use of biosourced materials. A groundwater geothermal heat pump is linked to a heating/cooling floor. Sunscreens ensure the management of solar gain in addition to the overhangs of the roof/slab of the galleries overlooking the courtyards.

The project benefits from 100% natural ventilation (except in the refectory part) controlled by centralized technical management. In other words, a complete device, whose efficiency and environmental performance greatly contribute to the WICONA aluminum joinery implemented by SMAB.

WICONA solutions: aesthetics and performance

The choice of joinery fell on the WICLINE 65 range due in particular to its finesse, its high thermal and technical performance, and its composition of recycled low-carbon Hydro CIRCAL® aluminum, which has the lowest carbon footprint on the market. . For even more purity, the windows with hidden openings have been installed in such a way as to also conceal the frame (in type with hidden frame). Two colors alternate depending on their layout in the building: cream white 9 and brown 001.

In the rooms, which are all through, these openings play a full part in the ventilation system. On the street side, the openings are French-style with air inlet at the top. On the courtyard side, fixed frames overlook the galleries and, above, bellows openings are positioned under the slope of the mono-pitch roof. Their opening/closing is motorized, managed by temperature and CO sensors₂ themselves connected to the GTC.

“The main specificity of this site is the creation of natural ventilation by motorized and automated openings via centralized technical management. Each classroom is equipped with WICLINE 65 frames with motorized bellows in the shed at the top and high-flow air inlet grilles on the ground floor, all connected to CO2 and temperature sensors. The French opening frames are also motorized to ensure over-ventilation at night, in order to bring in large air flows and lower the overall temperature of the building. » Sébastien Guillon, CEO SMAB

The benefits: energy sobriety and comfort

In addition to its thermal inertia, which allows the building to achieve its energy sobriety objectives and of which "the joinery is a preponderant part", notes the 1st deputy, "the heating-cooling floor and natural ventilation make it possible to maintain comfortable temperatures" . The start of the school year was in September 2021. Since then, “after a few adjustments”, the school group has received excellent marks from its users.