Timber-framed offices — Provence (FR)
The project is composed of four rectangular buildings constructed with a timber structure. The façades are fitted with large brise-soleil whose depth varies according to orientation: slimmer to the north and more generous to the south. This strategy controls solar gain while creating a unified visual filter across all the buildings.
Located on the edge of a nature park, the ensemble is laid out in a staggered pattern along the slope, allowing the landscape to weave between the volumes. The siting maximises views towards the surrounding mountains and puts the office floorplates in direct relationship with the outdoor spaces. The design is driven by durability and environmental performance, making full use of the timber structure and the carefully controlled thermal inertia of the floors.
The architectural approach is to create highly compact buildings and to concentrate the technical services at the centre of each floor. This organisation completely frees up the façades, maximises internal floor-to-ceiling heights and offers great flexibility in configuring the workspaces.
Programme: offices and landscaping of a nature park
Floor area: 12,500 m² GFA
Construction cost: €25M excl. VAT
Period: 2021–ongoing
Status: design phase
Client: private
Approach: timber structure; compact volumes; orientation-specific brise-soleil; integration with the nature park; high environmental performance of office floorplates
