The grand paris express: Promising urban renewal
The grand paris express: Promising urban renewal
At the heart of the transformation of the Greater Paris Metropolis (MGP), which aims to transform the Paris conurbation, mobility is king, and is embodied in a multitude of ways.
Whether it's the modernization of public transport, the move towards more sustainable individual mobility, or the Grand Paris Express project spearheaded by the Société des grands projets, the transformation of the region involves many challenges.
Equans France, a subsidiary of the Equans Group, a world leader in energy and services, is a key partner in this urban metamorphosis, combining technical expertise with a global vision. Through the diversity of the skills it brings to its projects, Equans France offers a unique insight into this highly complex program. Through a series of concrete projects, the aim is to guarantee the safety, performance and attractiveness of new infrastructures, while supporting a sustainable, economical and innovative approach to construction and operation.
Whether it's improving transport connectivity, supplying metro systems with energy, making public transport more reliable, integrating soft mobility right from the design phase of urban projects, facilitating the coordination of station and service worksites thanks to BIM, or ensuring the safety of infrastructures and users, Equans' various entities have been supporting the in-depth transformation of the Île-de-France region from the outset.
The Grand Paris Express, steered by the Société des grands projets, is the most important mobility project in the Greater Paris region: its new metro lines will link the main living and working areas in the suburbs, without passing through Paris.
A project that will facilitate travel, open up territories, reduce inequalities as well as CO₂ emissions by at least 14.2 million tons CO₂ equivalent, by 2050.
Thanks to the expertise of its teams, Equans France has won some fifteen major contracts within the framework of the public procurement contracts managed by the Société des grands projets on the GPE perimeter.
These include the private mobile LTE (Long Term Evolution - lines 15, 16 and 17) network, tunnel ventilation and smoke extraction (lines 14 Sud, 15 Sud, 16, 17 and 18), platform facades (lines 14, 16, 17 and 18), and power supply contracts: HVBT (lines 18, 16.3 and 17.2), traction (lines 16 and 17) and catenary (Aulnay operating center (CEA)). Equans is also involved in the installation of signalling equipment (line 14 & CEA).
In all, through entities such as Ineo Rail, Ineo UTS, Ineo Sclé Ferroviaire, Ineo Infracom, Ineo Tertiaire, Axima Tunnel, Axima Air, Bouygues Energies & Services and SXD, Equans will equip 68 stations with mobile networks, more than 35 km of overhead and underground lines with HV/LV and traction power, and more than 98 ancillary structures with tunnel utilities.
The latest project, and not the least, is the design-build contract for Line 15, linking the Bécon-les-Bruyères station to the Saint-Denis - Pleyel station.
In addition to the high and low voltage, HVAC and plumbing systems at the Grésillons station, Equans France will also be responsible for the design, supply and installation of the traction and ventilation/smoke extraction power supply systems for the 7 km tunnel, as well as the HV power supply for the 6 service structures and 4 stations along the route, ensuring the success of a project that will more than halve the daily journey time between La Défense and Saint-Denis-Pleyel.
Bouygues Energies & Services, for its part, will be responsible for the design and construction of Line 15 East of the Grand Paris Express from Bobigny to Saint-Ouen, and more specifically for the installation of the high and low voltage electrical systems and the Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems in the new stations.
Key figures for Line 15
4 stations
Les Grésillons, Les Agnettes, Bois-Colombes, Bécon-Les-Bruyères
7 km
of tunnel
6 service
structures
240 000
passengers concerned
19 minutes (compared with 46 at present)
to connect La Défense at Saint-Denis-Pleyel
Embodying new momentum
Through its cross-disciplinary expertise and its commitment to the energy and digital transition, Equans France plays a central role in the development of the Grand Paris Express and, more broadly, the Greater Paris metropolis.
A subsidiary of the Equans group, the entity embodies a new momentum: that of multidisciplinary technical expertise that connects, protects and supplies energy to entire metropolises, transforming them into the cities and territories of tomorrow.
With its 35,000-strong workforce, Equans France is involved at all levels of the territory, from neighborhoods to major infrastructures, and at every stage in the life of its projects, from studies to performance monitoring, as a supplier of low-carbon energy that is optimized and accessible to all.
It's the combination of this advanced “technician's expertise” and an in-depth global vision, due to the omnipresence of Equans' businesses in the life of every building, plant and territory, that gives it a particular clairvoyance in apprehending today's issues and anticipating tomorrow's challenges.
Elsewhere than in the Paris metropolis, Equans France is redefining the way territories are designed by supporting more sustainable transport and promoting reindustrialization thanks to innovative projects such as gigafactories, where its expertise has been recognized and called upon for all current projects.
This expertise also extends to the digital transformation of cities, as exemplified by the ALM project (Angers Loire Métropole), France's first “intelligent and sustainable territory”.
Designed to enhance the city's attractiveness, it integrates a wide range of Equans businesses, including mobility (traffic lights, parking, flow management, etc.), to improve the quality of life of local residents while reducing energy consumption and carbon emissions.
A recent survey by Icomera, a subsidiary of Equans France and the world's leading supplier of on-board connectivity solutions for trains, streetcars, buses and coaches, points to a new avenue to explore.
Over 89% of the hundreds of rail industry professionals surveyed in Europe and North America consider on-board Internet connectivity, and the multiple uses it supports in terms of safety, passenger experience and efficiency, to be crucial for the future of the sector.
