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Sumit Singhal
Sumit Singhal loves modern architecture. He comes from a family of builders who have built more than 20 projects in the last ten years near Delhi in India. He has recently started writing about the architectural projects that catch his imagination. Hotel Flottant in Paris, France by Seine DesignDecember 9th, 2016 by Sumit Singhal
Article source: Seine Design VOLUME AND INTEGRATION A piece of Paris on the Seine The integration of OFF Paris Seine in its environment comes first by the very Parisian expression it proposes. The hotel merges with the city via its right and left banks and the twin hulls of the hotel itself, the river Seine that splits the city, its zinc roofs, and the multiplicity of its services. In many ways OFF Paris is like a floating fragment of the city itself.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design
 Image Courtesy © Seine Design An uncluttered and elegant design OFF Paris Seine presents a simple and uncluttered architecture based on twin hulls strongly connected together, on which two levels of modules are superimposed. The floating facility adopts a discrete line since it respects the regulatory height of 6 m from the water line in order to preserve views on the river. Elegant zinc roofs open facades outward while a central glass roof lets natural light enter at the heart of the building.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design Transparency Despite its imposing size (75m x 18m), the OFF fits perfectly into its environment. If public areas’ facades celebrate volumes’ transparency and minimize screen effect, those dedicated to the hotel’s present a silver-woody coating that naturally mingle with the urban riverbanks background. The shutters, treated in discontinuity, give the facades some relief and vibration.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design To preserve the Austerlitz Viaduct The more we move towards the Austerlitz Viaduct (historical monument), the more spaces become public and transparent. The aft of the building is composed of a terrace built just above the water line, forming a balcony onto the river, and two marina pontoons allow smaller boats to moor alongside. From the swimming pool, the pool’s water line merges with the river, giving an unprecedented view on the Seine and surroundings.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design INTERIOR DESIGN Spatial treatment On board, all spaces are directly and clearly identifiable by clients. The fluidity of circulation corroborates this dimension. Four gangways enable to organize entries, exits – for customers and suppliers – and give access to different floors and locations in the facility. River experience Crossed by the river as Paris is crossed by the Seine, the water is the building’s backbone. Everything has been thought to make the river experience as authentic as possible: the flexibility of the hulls’ articulation to maintain the natural rocking movement, the generous perspectives on the Seine it delivers, the hotel’s projection to 10 m from the riverbanks thanks to gangways, the first floor level designed just above the water line, the port’s integration at the aft. In the evening, the permanent relationship between the facility and the water is magnified by the lighting design work of Franck Franjou.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design Style & Materials The style is globally sober, far away from fads, giving to the building a certain timelessness. We choose noble and sustainable materials to do so: mostly wood, copper, leather, glass and zinc. The colors are mainly copper and hot.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT Several green innovations have been implemented to reduce water and energy consumption on board:
 Image Courtesy © Seine Design THE BENEFITS OF MODULAR ARCHITECTURE Each room is a prefabricated module built in factory. The modular architecture process, very manageable, has numerous benefits in terms of environment:
 Gérard RONZATTI, Image Courtesy © Seine Design A RESILIENT FACILITY SEINE DESIGN has developed an innovative gangways’ system that provides both access and mooring. No dolphin pillars have been planted in the bottom of the Seine to maintain the building, thus reducing the environmental impact of the facility. The gangway system, based in a double bridge in scissor, ensure a comfortable access regardless the water level. Thus, during average / high flood, we will take the lower bridge since the slope is low. At usual water level, the access by the upper bridge will be privileged. The building was designed to bear the 1910 floods’ level (8,62 m).  Image Courtesy © Seine Design BIOGRAPHY – Gérard RONZATTI He graduated from l’Ecole Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (ENSBA) in Paris in 1978 and worked during its studies at Maurice Novarina’s architecture agency where he could managed big projects. From 1979 to 1981 he taught architecture at the University of Aleppo in Syria before joining “Les Ateliers de Montrouge” back in Paris where he became partner of Jean Louis Veret. In 1987 chance and friendship brought Gérard Ronzatti to design its first floating building, the “Maurice Chevalier,” a pier at the foot of the Eiffel Tower on behalf of Sodexho. This is the beginning of more than 20 years’ partnership with this prestigious operator for which he designed the entire fleet, including 400-seats panoramic restaurant boats (Cristal 1 & 2), as well as 600-seats sightseeing boats or the well-known fluvial shuttles “Batobus” in Paris.  Image Courtesy © Seine Design  Image Courtesy © Seine Design  Image Courtesy © Seine Design  Image Courtesy © Seine Design
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