A Flagship Factory for Soprema: From Technical Innovation to Reinvented Industrial Architecture
More than a production site, this new factory embodies an ambitious vision for the industry: a place where technological innovation and architectural quality come together in harmony. A powerful statement reflecting the Soprema Group’s commitments, clearly visible from the A54 motorway, from Nimes to Salon-de-Provence in France.
With its sculpted volumes, monumental steel canopy, and glazed façades, and expansive glass façades, the building breaks away from the conventional image of industrial sites. Far from the standard norms of the sector, it asserts a refined architectural language that plays with rhythm, transparency, light, and the staging of space.
Specializing in the manufacture of rigid polyurethane foam panels, the factory is designed to host the Soprema Group’s product line dedicated to the thermal insulation of roofs, walls, and floors.
A façade over 250 meters long defines the project, conveying a distinctly contemporary and high-quality image. Through the subtle interplay of volume and materials, the architecture varies dimensions and composition to soften the building’s visual impact.
To the south, the large production hall rises in full transparency. It gains height at its eastern end, offering users a glimpse of the activity unfolding inside.
Strong visual landmark of the factory, an immense louvered steel canopy unfurls at the forefront of the building. Beneath this airy structure, adorned with a double skin of slatted wood that lends a unique character to the parallelepiped form, a two-story pavilion discreetly houses social areas and a laboratory.
The finished product storage area, stretching 170 meters in length, is elegantly punctuated by tall vertical openings, providing valuable daylight during the day and transforming into luminous slits at night, bringing the façade to life.
On the roof, a field of crystalline photovoltaic panels generates solar energy for on-site self-consumption, contributing to the site's energy transition efforts.
Technical specifications sheet
Project: Construction of a polyurethane insulation manufacturing plant, including a production hall and its ancillary spaces (raw material and auxiliary storage, technical rooms), three finished product storage halls, and a pavilion housing social facilities (offices, changing rooms).
+ Photovoltaic panels
Client: Soprema
Location: Saint-Gilles (France)
Project management team: Ateliers A+ (Architecture, Cost Management, Project Management), Berim, Gaxieu
Surface area: 26,400 m² floor surface area
Cost of the works: €25,674,000 (excl. all taxes)
Schedule: Design/technical studies: 2021 – Delivery: April 202
