Equilis, between city and nature, an architecture redesigned by Anthony Bechu, architect and Aliénor Bechu-Blond, interior architect and designer

Designed by the Bechu & Associés agency in the 2000s for Steria, the Equilis project was already intended to be flexible, anticipating the essential evolution of working methods and facilitating its renovation more than twenty years later.

Equilis has an important place in the life of the rapidly changing Bords de Seine district. Originally, this office building with a surface area of 17.055 m2 was located in a residential area.

So that it participates in the renewal of the neighborhood and in economic and social life, this urban thinking is preserved by recreating a strong link between the object and the urban fabric.

Thus, one of the challenges of this restructuring is to connect the street with the heart of the building, via the treatment of the facades with openings and transparencies.

The desire is therefore to open the building so that it is in direct connection with the public space and recreate a signal building thanks to the design of a large main opening.

The interaction created between interior and exterior with a ground floor open to the city attracts, highlights the comfort of use and the quality of life at work by integrating both views and natural light.

To reconnect nature with architecture, on the ground floor, three patios have been designed, including one in the reception hall. From the entrance, a backlit vault is designed with a play of materials and warm, earthy colors, bringing nature into the street and generating immersion in the building. Thus, the object turns onto a heart of an island that is both intimate and visible.

Equilis also benefits from extreme flexibility with 2 entrances, 2 stairwells, large running platforms, and generous ceiling height. Thus, the project is divided into 3 units from the ground floor to the ground floor +7 with the possibility of vertical division.

The offices are arranged on seven floors of 2.120 m2 and reworked by densifying the building's workforce to 1 workstation for 10 m2 of SUBL, allowing an increase in the workforce to 1.600 people.

A reinterpretation of the interior spaces is orchestrated in particular with the requalification of the ground floor with a double-height main hall opening onto the patio and two secondary halls, a service base designed to accommodate 200 people (ERP) – including a business center with auditorium arranged around the garden, an inter-company restaurant, a gym, a creative lab, cafeteria, a lounge area and a Click & collect service.

The combination of the whole, gardens and services, highlights the collective: an evolving place with the notion of a counter, a space for exchange.

This innovative project (soon to be the first low-carbon building in the district) demonstrates the agency's ongoing commitment to pushing the boundaries of contemporary architecture while promoting environmental sustainability.

Between reuse and service real estate, Equilis is an optimal and virtuous restructuring. In the concept of interior architecture, the vocabulary is linked to nature: organically sourced materials, reuse (hall floor, walls, sink, etc.) and wood, thus promoting well-being at work.

The labels and certifications targeted are Breeam International Excellent level, BBCA renovation, as well as the Osmoz benchmark, a benchmark for well-being at work and the Smartscore label. The WiredScore V3 label (Gold Level) has already been obtained.

For Anthony Bechu, architect: “Buildings live, we must recreate a story and design these ecosystems, a resonance with the technology and the art of living that people will have inside, a place where we can transmit knowledge and invent. The Bechu & Associés agency is by definition sustainable and each era revisits and adapts by designing architecture that takes care of society. »

For Eleanor: “Integrating nature through innovative architectural design, our office interior design concept aims to merge professional life with the urban environment, offering a dynamic and balanced life journey. By highlighting the complementarity of colors inspired by nature, notably terracotta, combined with natural materials such as wood and terrazzo, we create a serene, comfortable and interactive setting, promoting well-being within the workspace. »