Franck Boutté is recording an episode of the Journal de Grand Paris podcast

During the International Wood Construction Forum, held under the glass roof of the Grand Palais, Franck Boutté appeared on an episode of the JGP Podcast.

The recording took place in the 21st-Century Wood/Bio-based Architecture Gallery, located on the upper floor of the Grand Palais. This moment also provided an opportunity to exchange ideas with Fabienne Bulle (Bulle, Poirier & Justman), Germain Pluvinage (faceB), and Antoine Béal (Béal Blanckaert architects and urban planners).

The tour continued on the ground floor, through the materials library and the forum’s bookstore.

As the discussion unfolded, one observation became clear: wood has now become a common material in construction. In just a few years, it has gone from being an alternative to a standard.

However, Franck Boutté points out that the goal is not to promote an “all-wood” approach. Decarbonizing the building sector involves construction choices adapted to specific uses and climatic constraints.

His approach is based on three principles:

• reducing the carbon footprint of buildings,
• lightening structures,
• but without sacrificing summer comfort

As part of the study conducted on the Chapelle Charbon project, in collaboration with SPL Paris & Métropole Aménagement, the consortium comprising BASE, H2o architects, GRAU, and Leclercq Associés highlighted the limitations of very lightweight buildings. These structures can lose thermal mass and become more susceptible to heat waves.

One approach, therefore, is to combine different materials:

• wood and bio-based materials to reduce the carbon footprint,

raw earth, concrete, or other materials with high thermal mass to regulate temperature.

From this perspective, low-carbon construction involves striking a balance between environmental performance, user experience, and climate adaptation.

The podcast episode is available on streaming platforms:

Spotify: https://lnkd.in/e8GpgqXv

Deezer: https://lnkd.in/egarrvd4

Thank you to Fabienne Proux for this immersive look into the heart of the forum.