52 Champs Elysées
After almost a century of existence, the "52 Champs Elysées" building constructed in the interwar period on the emblematic Avenue des Champs Elysées (to house the National City Bank of New York) needed a renovation. In 2013, when the Virgin Megastore brand left after thirty years, the illustrious building was no more than an Art Deco treasure that had failed, deteriorated and become forgotten. Time seemed to have stopped, as the building no longer met contemporary uses, standards and regulations. 18 months of work were necessary to restore its prestige. A total renovation, from the structure to the façades, in which Reynaers Aluminium took part as part for the creation of custom-made windows.
Aesthetics to be preserved
"The rehabilitation aimed to preserve the building's former aesthetics. Consequently, it was necessary to offer windows aesthetically close to those existing in steel," explains Christian PEDROSA, project cell manager at Reynaers Aluminium. However, the demand also required an increase in thermal performance.
25 000 m² of surface area
Creation of 20 moulds for custom-made windows
2 distinct façades on the courtyard and street sides
A system that complies with the most stringent regulations
The TS 68 window range combines aesthetics and performance. "This is why it is so much in demand by our customers," says Christian PEDROSA, project manager at Reynaers Aluminium. Other advantages: it is covered by an A.T.D. and has all the essential characteristics to guarantee high energy and thermal performance. It also ensures high performance AEV. "It is an ideal solution for all new or renovation projects, ITE or ITI, in compliance with the most demanding regulations," he concludes. The best way to bring the "52 Champs Elysées" into a new era of performance, without altering its architecture.
To meet these two constraints, Reynaers Aluminium has replaced the existing frames with the TS 68 aluminium system with thermal bridge break strip and multiple joint barriers. "The latter have the particularity of improving the comfort of the occupants while guaranteeing energy savings," says Christian PEDROSA.
A tailor-made solution with the creation of moulds
"For the 52 Champs Elysées project, we have created many profiles: 9 for the street side and 11 for the courtyard side. From the street, the new windows had to be as similar as possible to the old steel windows. To do this, the mass seen from the aluminium profiles had to be reduced, the exterior had to have a moulded finish and additional profiles called "small woods" had to be glued to the glazing in order to respect the initial appearance. »
The TS 68 window range combines aesthetics and performance.
Sylvie DENOYER, President of AUVERGNE ALU
"At the beginning of the project, no one was able to create the desired systems for this rehabilitation, or even to get closer to the demand. Especially on the street side: creation of mouldings and small woods on the glazing, very little aluminium thickness (the most difficult to achieve)... It was a real challenge in terms of style and design.
Reynaers Aluminium has been our partner of choice to meet this challenge because it has the ability to create new systems when there are specific constraints. That is really their strength as well as their support throughout the project. The result fully satisfied the Bouygues Immobilier team."
Technical Elements
Involved stakeholders
Other stakeholder
- Bouygues Immobilier (General contractors)
