Vocational School of Building Trades

The Vocational School of Building Trades is built on the edge of Riom, a city of more than 18 000 inhabitants near Clermont-Ferrand, in Auvergne. The importance of the program (22 000 m2 floor spaces, 1200 students, 300 interns) has helped design a building that consists in a piece of city landscape in response to urban sprawl, a city-state, consisting of 7 buildings, identifiable by their function. • The Lyceum building project says, to induce their attractiveness, the nobility of learning the building trades and demonstrates the efficiency and performance of wood use in the construction of large public facilities. • Finally, it clearly responds to the will of the owner to see taken into account the rules to ensure sustainable development of our societies. This is reflected in the draft by the evidence of the implementation of proven technical solutions, meeting the target goals. • Wood is widely used in the Lyceum (120dm3/m2 surface), mainly douglas fir from the forests of Massif Central. It is used in its construction as its most innovative ways (traditional or laminated frames, wood frame walls, ceilings, brise-soleil and screens) and in its operation the heating requirements of the building are in fact, managed by a boiler fueled by wood plates. • The school shows various atmospheres. It follows the path of students in different areas treated with much care.

Each room has a specific environment: controlled light for classrooms, smoothed down light for the CDI, more playful light to the restaurant, and enjoys views of quality with its environment. This environment is the result of careful planning to outdoor spaces. It reconciles distant views of the Monts d Auvergne and closeup views of the courtyard and gardens. It differentiates from public to private spaces, intimises the accomodations, guarantees enjoyment of paths, shelters from the wind, holding the storm water retention, provides immunity buildings from floods. The manufacturing of landscape is, in a word, inseparable from the architectural project. In the Lyceum, the architecture is an ongoing relationship between teaching knowledge and ability to think. It may be a valuable educational tool for teachers.

The hall housing the streams of technical education in particular, is a place of learning and experimentation as well as place of performance and valuation of the institution. The rigor applied to both the drawing and description of the project as monitoring the site, supplemented by an expanded mission to the signage, artistical intervention and choice of furnitures, allowed to express consistency and attention to detail in respect of costs and time. In conclusion, the Vocatinal School of building Trades in Riom, built and heated of wood, attentive to its image as much as its purpose, concerned with the comfort and pleasure of its users, wants to demonstrate that architectural and environmental qualities are one.