ArcelorMittal Pavilion in Esch/Alzette

The spirit of the place calls for steel in the city

The construction of the Arcelor Mittal pavilion in the centenary park of the town of Esch, the heart of the Luxembourg steelmaking industry, is a unique occasion for recalling the industrial origins of the place and the bringing of steel to the city.

At a time when constructible land is rare in urban centres, the creation of the Nonenwisen park is a luxury that combines the double necessity of a quality living environment provided with facilities where the culture and memory of the city can express themselves.

The pavilion, which is laid out as a ship anchored along a quayside, straddles the waterway and plays off the over-high level of the embankment. The construction, which is located on one of the day-to-day walkways of the Esch residents, creates a belvedere over the park.

As a natural water balancing basin, the flood-prone nature of the park justifies the pile-style building, which is rarely used in the architectural landscape of Luxembourg. It is a structure with a shape and look that is immediately recognisable by all whether seen up close, from afar, or from the skies.

A southern conceptual expression built in the north

In order to ensure a remarkable architectural expression of the pavilion, ArcelorMittal called on a renowned project-management team consisting of the EMBT architectural office of Barcelona and two Luxembourg partners, the Moreno office, and the Inca engineering office.

The pavilion, which is built around a flower metaphor, with a working surface area of 500 m², is laid over a landscaped garden and offers visitors a gradual view of decidedly contemporary steel architecture. The 'architectural promenade' so dear to Le Corbusier now has its steel counterpart in Luxembourg.

The structuring of the two main exhibition rooms, distribution over two levels, access by a ramp or stairway make this construction a singular edifice which is nevertheless a multiple achievement:

- Through the deliberate raising of the exhibition level immediately recalling the architectural invariants of the Parthenon and Villa Savoye: 'See farther and be seen from farther'.

- Through the expression of its shapes subtly playing on curves, lines, and transparencies in colours associating the natural hue of the galvanised steel and bright colours of yellow-orange and assorted reds.

- Through exhibition rooms offering generous space for highlighting varied works complemented by a mezzanine level offering a platform over the park for the exhibition of open-air sculptures.

- Through its wide-ranging use of steel, and its support for sustainable development with a material that is indefinitely recyclable and with reinforced insulation.

- And it is finally a multiple achievement because the construction of the pavilion has created a cultural melting pot with the participants in its design and execution (French, Germans, Italians, Spaniards, Belgians, Russians, Portuguese, people of Luxembourg, and even Japanese).

A steel structure using ArcelorMittal's latest technologies

The pavilion's pile structure, laid over 72 foundation plots, is constructed using IPE and HEB type galvanised-steel rolled beams bolted together.

The floors, which are distributed over two levels, are comprised of a mezzanine platform (duckboards and bulb plate) and the flooring of the exhibition rooms are made with the contribution of a Cofradal 200 type steel-concrete composite slab. This innovative product recently developed by the ArcelorMittal Construction subsidiary is strong, economic, and easy to lay. It is fabricated based on thin steel sheet sections and concrete, and includes the insulation necessary for good performance of the buildings floors.

The walls of the envelope, provided with a smooth cornice outline, are made using a double-layer wall technology. Vertical cassettes hooked onto the structural framework hold the exterior layer by means of screwed steel plates.

Part of these galvanised plates was produced in the ArcelorMittal Galvalange mill (Luxembourg). The other part of the partition is made up of Sollight plates, a composite sandwich of two 0.4 mm pre-coated steel sheets with a 2.2 mm thick thermoplastic polymer core, fabricated in the ArcelorMittal Montataire mill near Paris. The interior holds an insulating layer (150 mm of rockwool) and gypsum inner partition.

The steel roofing, also comprised of 1 mm steel cassette sections laid on beams, is insulated by 150 mm of rockwool. It is sealed by a welded PVC membrane.

Finally, the opening frames, doors, light fixtures, and furniture are also made using steel.

By Pierre Engel, February 2007