This vast accommodation plan of € 247 million intended to improve the quality of life of French military troops is distinguished by the choice of an off-site industrialized construction and a high-performance and sustainable solution combining comfort, cost control and optimized deadlines.
Called UNIK, this ambitious project bringing together 5 entities of Bouygues Bâtiment France Europe is entering a new phase today with the start of work on the first operation in Saint-Maixent-l'Ecole, in Deux-Sèvres, for the National School. Active NCOs. These 2 buildings with 50 rooms will be delivered in March 2022.
This new framework agreement is part of the hosting plan launched by the Minister of the Armed Forces on October 17, 2019 at the 3rd RPIMa in Carcassonne. It concerns the design, construction, development, upkeep and maintenance over two years of 3 geographical lots of accommodation buildings spread over the territory with a concentration in Brittany, the Grand-Est and the Mediterranean region. A true multi-site program, it illustrates Bouygues Bâtiment France Europe's ability to develop collaborative projects bringing together its various entities. The UNIK program has 46 operations that will be gradually carried out by 2024 - including 15 in 2021.
“Bouygues Bâtiment France Europe is honored to continue its partnership with the French Ministry of the Armed Forces through the Unik framework agreement. This ambitious modular construction program is being rolled out across France and combines industrialization and user comfort for a personalized and tailor-made solution. The production off site and the assembly of prefabricated elements on the site make it possible to optimize construction times, to limit the carbon impact of the project, while keeping a clean site and limiting nuisances. I am proud to see that our teams are reinventing themselves every day to offer our customers more energy-efficient construction methods and to offer more virtuous buildings made with local partners ”, declares Nicolas BORIT, Deputy CEO of Bouygues Construction in charge of Bouygues Bâtiment France Europe.
“The 2019-2025 military programming law is 295 billion euros, over 7 years, dedicated to the renovation and modernization of the infrastructure and equipment of the armed forces. At human height, the LPM has objectives to improve the daily lives of combatants, which results in the provision of accommodation infrastructure meeting modern standards. Beyond the contract, it is a real partnership that links the Ministry of the Armed Forces and Bouygues Bâtiment France Europe for the next few years to respond to this ambitious program for the benefit of the entire territory ” declares Commander Nicolas, in charge of steering this contract for the Ministry of the Armed Forces.
To carry out all of these operations, which total 120.000 m² of floor space, 13 types of accommodation buildings have been designed to be completed within an optimal period of 7 to 10,5 months: buildings in single rooms , in double rooms and in quadruple rooms (for the volunteers of the Army) according to the sites and the needs. These accommodations will focus on the comfort of use and the quality of life of soldiers through an organization of spaces in living areas with a day area and a night area, lighting with natural light, furniture of hotel range with large storage capacities ...
Off-site industrialized construction
The particularity of the UNIK program is also based on the choice of an industrialized 2D construction mixing wood and concrete. All the building components are prefabricated off-site, in the factory and in the workshop. They are then assembled on site. This approach applies to the exterior of buildings (walls and floor slabs, timber frame walls, etc.) as well as to the interior (prefabricated bathrooms, pre-assembled furniture, etc.). This standardized solution makes it possible both to control costs, to optimize construction times, to significantly reduce nuisance on site, but also to improve the quality of construction and anticipate the future reuse of materials.
Romain Vondière, Director of UNIK specifies: "The objective of these standardization and industrialization initiatives is to best meet our customer's expectations on the quality delivered and the interior atmosphere offered to the military".
“UNIK is an architectural project, designed by the VLAU agency, as a new model of military architecture, combining standardization, heritage and habitability. The optimized design of each element makes it possible to meet the main challenges of the specifications: durability, environmental performance, comfort and constructive efficiency. Adaptation to geographic and urban contexts reinforce the identity of each construction while respecting the heritage of the sites in which they are part. Finally, the user benefits from private, restful and high-quality spaces, as well as genuine spaces of conviviality and meeting, both inside and outside by the fitting out of loggias and public spaces. ". declares Pierre Maurette, Vincent Lavergne Architecture Urbanism
UNIK takes shape in Saint-Maixent-l'École (79)
The first UNIK operation takes shape in Saint-Maixent-l'Ecole in Deux-Sèvres, on the site of the National School of Active NCOs. The work will continue until March 2022 and concern the construction of 2 buildings with 50 single rooms. These two buildings of the BCC type (Building for Single Executives) with a capacity of 50 beds with tiles on the roof and clear plaster on the facade will be organized around a small square and landscaped arrangements.
The industrialization of MOB facades (wood frame walls), cross walls, slabs and bathrooms will allow these buildings to be installed quickly and easily while combining robustness and durability. For this project, local and regional partners are privileged with already more than fifteen designated partner companies.