What's new < Innovation & Construction: Lafarge

main content

What's new

Listen

Lafarge has partnered with renowned architecture schools to develop Studio+ training program. This partnership allows the Group to think about construction methods in affordable housing at an early stage with the students.

Studio+, a training program for architecture students

Lafarge has developed and maintained relationships with the world of architecture for over 15 years. This approach allows the Group to work upstream of the construction chain, directly with architects, who are both specifiers and users of its materials.

This year, the Group has launched a new training program in partnership with schools of architecture. Its name: Studio +. Its goal: to involve architecture students in the Group's research on affordable housing and to work with them on construction systems able to respond to these challenges. A first for an industrial group!

After an assessment of worldwide housing, students will be faced with specific issues from their own country. Their training will be composed of 3 stages:

a series of conferences and roundtables on affordable housing with key speakers such as architect Michael Bell, Professor at Columbia University (USA) and Anne Lacaton, rewarded French National Grand Prize of Architecture, but also representatives of UN-Habitat;
workshops on materials and construction systems adapted to the local environment;
creating an architectural project on this topic.

Three major schools of architecture are taking part in Studio+ with Lafarge:

Sir JJ College of Architecture in Mumbai, India,
The National School of Architecture Paris-Belleville (ENSAPB) in France,
The University of Architecture and Urbanism "Ion Mincu" (UAUIM) from Bucharest, Romania.

Other partnerships are being considered for the upcoming school year, particularly in North America, Brazil, Egypt and South Africa.

Lafarge & architects

Studio+ architecture program with Lafarge

Affordable housing

What is it?

When talking about affordable housing, Lafarge means housing for people who do not have access to decent housing via traditional financial ways. The Group has therefore developed expertise in this field to respond to increasing demand for better access to housing. Today, over 4 billion people around the world are deprived of access to decent accommodation.

Lafarge’s expertise

Studio+ blog

Are you a student, an architect, or simply interested in affordable housing? Find expert interviews, open questions on architecture, the presentation of the conference speakers on Studio+ blog!

Studio+ blog

Tools

Rate (average: 4.2 / 5)

Bookmark:

Focus on Studio+ program in India

Housing in India

Key figures

With its 1.25 billion inhabitants, India is the 2nd most populous country in the world after China.
70% of the India population lives below the poverty line.
400 million people live in urban areas - a fast increasing trend.
The number of people living in slums has fallen by 32% between 1990 and 2010.

In India, where population is growing very fast, access to decent housing has become a priority. In Mumbai, local contractors are thus seeking to renovate homes in the slums by offering low-cost solutions. Lafarge has therefore partnered with Sir JJ College of Architecture to contribute to this reflection in the frame of Studio+ in India.

After a first theoretical module followed by a phase of workshops - including visits to slums - several conferences will be held in the school. Students will then develop an affordable housing project to house 100 people. The best projects will be selected for an exhibition within the school.