Hotel des Postes – an award-winning refurbishment project in Strasbourg
WindowMaster, in collaboration with Bouygues Immobilier, has supported the transformation of the former Hotel des Postes into a mixed-use development project. The Strasbourg project includes shops, service facilities, offices, housing, restaurants, and a brewery. A major renovation project for the city, Hotel des Postes is a neo-Gothic former post office. Covering an area of 20,000m² and located in an important UNESCO heritage site, the entire existing structure has been renovated, with a further 2,000m² modern extension added. Putting the project’s size, and scale of ambition, in context, the building was reconfigured into: 62 co-ownership units, 20 bare-ownership units, 18 supported living units,1 managed residence of 84 living units for seniors citizens (Jardin d’Arcadie), 2,400 m² of office space, 1 brewery, and a post office.
Visit a reference projectSolution
Natural ventilation , Smoke Ventilation
Location
Strasbourg, France
Sector
Residential , Commercial Buildings
Project Type
Refurbishment
Project partners
Architectes Strasbourg Weber & KeilingHistoric buildings require a natural touch
Originally built in 1899, the Hotel des Postes is currently owned by leading French developer Bouygues Immobilier, which wanted to create a contemporary mixed-use development whilst preserving the building’s unique architectural heritage. This required a particularly gentle touch, sympathetic to the building’s unique architecture and retrofitting it with modern interiors, whilst maintaining a visual dialogue with the surrounding area. Not only that, the project also came with a strict design brief, intended to reduce the finished building’s embodied and operational CO2. Crucially, this meant the materials and products specified had to be as low-carbon as possible, preferably manufactured according to a circular economic model. Intervention during the construction phase also had to be kept to the bare minimum, conserving as much of the original structure as possible. These requirements extended beyond the building’s fabric, encompassing the fixtures and fittings too, including the ventilation systems. This would eventually lead Bouygues Immobilier to approach us, as leading ventilation and façade automation specialists, for a solution that would be both smart and energy efficient.
A healthier solution for a comfortable environment
Arriving on the project in 2022, with our state-of-the-art MotorController 10A and 20A window control systems, we undertook the task of motorising the windows in the building’s four stairwells as well as those for its state-of-the-art brewery, fitting smart actuators throughout. Due to its substantial size, four actuators were also installed on the Hotel des Poste’s glass roof. Perfectly synchronised with the help of the MotorLink® technology, this helped achieve the client’s target of realising a low-environmental impact, high-performance hybrid ventilation system. The new system’s ability to take advantage of the outdoor air current to regulate natural airflow and ventilate the building’s interiors will actively increase resident and visitor comfort. It also improves IAQ and occupant wellbeing, helping reduce the building’s overall energy consumption. Proving project’s energy efficiency credentials, it was recently awarded France’s coveted “Effinergie” certification for renovated housing and “BREEAM” for new commercial buildings.
Intelligent control of windows: MotorLink®
MotorLink® is a communication technology that enables 2-way control and feedback between window actuators and the Building Management System via the MotorController. All WindowMaster control systems are MotorLink® capable with many of our actuators. Click below to learn more and see related products.
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Safety for all
In the event of a fire, evacuating smoke quickly to avoid smoke inhalation is critical, particularly in stairwells. Here, we also played a key role in helping to meet strict building regulations, particularly around fire safety. We supported Bouygues Immobilier through the specification of our smoke ventilation solutions, which seamlessly automate windows and enable efficient smoke extraction. In the event of an emergency, this will prove vital towards guaranteeing the safe evacuation of occupants. Completed at the end of 2022, Hotel Des Postes residents and visitors now enjoy the many benefits of cleaner air and a safer place to live.
