La Chaux-de-Fonds is at the center of the European “CALECHE” project, the aim of which is to reinvent the renovation of historic buildings, finding a balance between respect for heritage and technological solutions. Around a quarter of the real estate stock in Europe and Switzerland is affected. This three-year study (2023-2026) brings together fifteen partners from the world of research and industry. Two Neuchâtel companies are part of it: LMNT consultancy, a technical consulting company; the Arthur Piaget Institute, specializing in training and research in history, whose role is to take into account the cultural aspects at stake, drawing in particular on the human and social sciences.
Swedes soon to visit La Chaux-de-Fonds
“CALECHE” is financed by the European Union and the Confederation to the tune of 4 million euros. The Watchmaking Metropolis is the only urban ensemble to be part of the four exploratory sites chosen. The others are the Villa Matarazzo (Italy), the old museum-library of Grenoble (France) and Donnerska Huus (Sweden). The latter, a 13th century building, is located on the island of Gotland, in the Unesco town of Visby. Swedes and Chaux-de-Fonniers will not fail to exchange views within the framework of this project and, perhaps, to bring mutual progress.
Two buildings soon to be pilots in the watchmaking metropolis
In the town of Le Corbusier, two pilot buildings will soon be selected, on which tests will be carried out, for example in photovoltaics or insulation.
We know that La Chaux-de-Fonds has just relaxed its criteria for installing photovoltaic panels in the Unesco zone. Far from calling into question this evolution, “CALECHE” “is part of the continuity of these strategies. We want to encourage all the reflections that could allow La Chaux-de-Fonds to present itself in a very original way on a regional, national and European scale too, perhaps,” declares Noëlle-Laetitia Perret, co-director of the Arthur Piaget Institute.
The “CALECHE” project started a year ago. The opportunity for the Arthur Piaget Institute to take stock of its own contributions. She has created and enriched a multilingual interdisciplinary lexicon to facilitate the understanding of all stakeholders. She is conducting a survey of “all stakeholders” affected by the renovation process, and will organize meetings and workshops. Finally, she continues the historical and cultural analysis of the different sites (based on existing studies): “That of La Chaux-de-Fonds is the one we know best, but for the other three sites, there is still work to be done,” explains Noëlle-Laetitia Perret. /vco
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