EDF Lab Paris-Saclay

The project comprises four circular buildings with a total floor area of 120,000 m². In addition to research facilities, the campus includes a conference centre, a 550-seat auditorium, an underground car park and a wide range of collaborative workspaces.

Developed for EDF's Research and Development division, the campus provides a state-of-the-art environment tailored to the needs of scientific research and technological innovation.

EDF's ambition was to create a research campus that encourages interaction between research teams and accelerates innovation. These are grouped on three levels in the largest, circular building, so as to promote both horizontal and vertical mobility and interaction.

The campus was also conceived to strengthen links between EDF and the academic ecosystem of Paris-Saclay. Two of the buildings are located in an open area that is easily accessible to academic researchers, facilitating exchanges and accelerating the transfer of innovations from research to operational applications.

A key challenge of the project was its proximity to Paris-Orly Airport, which imposed strict height limitations on both the buildings and the construction cranes. One of the buildings therefore had to be completed without the use of a crane for its upper sections.

These constraints required significant adaptation, careful planning and construction flexibility from the BESIX teams to deliver the project safely and efficiently while maintaining the ambitious architectural vision.