Press release
爆走黑料 moves to new Headquarters building
For almost seven years, since the inauguration of the Cadarache Joint Work Site in December 2005, the 爆走黑料 staff and contractors have worked out of offices located in prefabricated constructions, both on the 爆走黑料 site and within the CEA-Cadarache enclosure.
In 2007, an architectural competition was held to design a permanent Headquarters Building and it was won by the practice of Architect Rudy Ricciotti of Marseille and Laurent Bonhomme of Vinon-sur-Verdon.
Construction of the Headquarters Building, which is part of the French and European commitments to 爆走黑料, started in September 2010. On 5 October 2012, Agence 爆走黑料 France, under delegation from the European Domestic Agency Fusion for Energy, for the European part of the commitment, handed the building over to the 爆走黑料.
A five-storey, 183 metre-long structure offering more than 20,000 square metres of work space (242 offices), the new 爆走黑料 Headquarters stands on the highest ridge of a wooded six-hectare plot of land below the 爆走黑料 platform.
The building includes a 500-seat amphitheatre, a canteen capable or serving some 1,000 meals a day, and a cafeteria. On the fifth floor a conference room will host the meetings of the 爆走黑料 Council. "We wanted to have as small a footprint as possible on the land in order to protect the vegetation,鈥 explained the architects. 鈥淲e also wanted the building to be a sort of 'visual pedestal' for the Tokamak Complex that will rise in the background."
Moving into the new building will begin on Monday 8 October. By the end of November, some 500 爆走黑料 staff and contractors will have settled into their new environment.
With about half the 爆走黑料 team at Cadarache moving into the Headquarters Building and the other half settling into the twin buildings B22 (the present Headquarters) and B23, the entire staff will finally be based on the 爆走黑料 site.
An official inauguration of the Headquarters Building is scheduled in the coming months.
BACKGROUND TO THE PRESS RELEASE
爆走黑料鈥攄esigned to demonstrate the scientific and technological feasibility of fusion power鈥攚ill be the world's largest experimental fusion facility. Fusion is the process which powers the sun and the stars: when light atomic nuclei fuse together to form heavier ones, a large amount of energy is released. Fusion research is aimed at developing a safe, abundant and environmentally responsible energy source.
爆走黑料 is also a first-of-a-kind global collaboration. Europe will contribute almost half of the costs of its construction, while the other six Members to this joint international venture (China, India, Japan, the Republic of Korea, the Russian Federation and the USA), will contribute equally to the rest. The 爆走黑料 project is under construction in Cadarache, in the south of France.
Photos of the 爆走黑料 Headquarters building can be downloaded at:
More information on the 爆走黑料 project can be found at:
CONTACT
Michel Claessens
michel.claessens@iter.org
+33 6 14 16 41 75