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Research

Partnerships

The collaborative approach favored by Lafarge R&D is exemplified by its partnerships with the world's largest research centers, graduate schools, institutions and international universities. The Group is thus able to share its experience and knowledge while gaining new perspectives, particularly with regard to sustainable construction.

A Research Chair in construction materials

In 2006, the Group's Research center, the Ecole des Ponts and the Ecole Polytechnique (2 prestigious French engineering schools) joined forces to create the Research Chair in the Science of Sustainable Construction Materials.

The Chair offers a unique teaching and research program which combines scientific endeavor and industrial experience in the fields of physics, mechanics and chemistry. The program is aimed at students, engineers and researchers.

The aim is to:

create a world center of excellence in the science of construction materials,
accelerate the move towards sustainable construction which respects the environment, human beings and the planet.

Viewpoint

Olivier Coussy, Director of the Research Chair in the Science of Materials for Sustainable Construction at the Ecole des Ponts and Director of Research at the Central Laboratory of the Ecole des Ponts.

"Over the last 10 years, we have observed the development of a veritable engineering science in cement materials which is based on expertise in a wide range of different disciplines. We established this research chair to demonstrate that these complex materials can be approached in an interdisciplinary manner. Lafarge brings a new, more pragmatic perspective and its worldwide scope is essential for recruiting high-level international students."

International partnerships

Lafarge and M.I.T.

Franz-Josef Ulm, Professor of Civil Engineering and Environment at M.I.T., United States.

"Within the framework of a partnership with Lafarge, I study the mechanical characteristics of cement at the nano-scale*, that is, at an infinitely small scale. This is a very interesting scientific approach that reveals properties which were unknown before now.

Our work will result in the design of extremely high-performance materials and will allow us to increase their lifespan.

In my opinion, Lafarge is the only player in the building industry which has mastered this nanometric approach to materials."

* Nano-scale : (10^-9)

M.I.T. website

Lafarge works in close collaboration with the most respected institutes and universities in the world:

in the United States: M.I.T. (Massachusetts Institute of Technology), Georgia Tech, the University of California at Berkeley and Princeton,
in Canada: the universities of Toronto and Sherbrooke and Laval University in Quebec,
in China : the Building Materials Academy in Beijing,
in India : the Institute of Technology in Roorke,
in Europe: Imperial College in London and the Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale in Lausanne,
in France: the Ecole Polytechnique, the Ecole des Ponts, Paris VI and a number of C.N.R.S. laboratories.

Internships, university exchange programs, seminars and visits are organized within the framework of these partnerships.

A publication policy for international reviews has also been implemented.

The European Nanocem network, created in 2004 on the initiative of Lafarge, has a membership of around 30 industrialists and academics. Its mission:

to develop knowledge of the microstructure of materials and achieve genuine technological breakthroughs over the long-term,
to contribute to university education and prepare the next generation of cement industry researchers.

Lafarge & Columbia University

Innovative concretes & sustainable architecture

Find out all the program of the conferences dedicated to concrete and organized by Columbia's Graduate School of Architecture in exclusive partnership with Lafarge.

All the program