Urban logistics hub

Sandrine Rivière

• Multidisciplinary practice

Lyon's Urban Logistics Hub (ULH) project aims to meet the challenge of moving goods around the city in a carbon-free manner, thus addressing the issues of congestion and pollution caused by last-mile deliveries.

Located in the heart of the city, the Edouard Herriot port is a major strategic site. As a transit and distribution hub, the port is the terminal of departure for goods that arrive by rail, river and road. The goods are first soted and grouped together and then dispatched across the entire metropolitan area via environmentally friendly and carbon-free distribution methods. The Urban Logistics Hub project, led by the AREP teams, comprises the construction of a logistics hub which, due to its flexible space organisation, will have the capacity to accommodate all projects, from those of small businesses to those of large operators. The infrastructure has been designed to blend in seamlessly with the environment and be consistent with the ongoing urban transformation of the Gerland district. It is composed of two buildings, the North and South blocks, rising in the centre of a plot of land on the port. The north building marks the entrance to the site. The south building, on the other hand, features a sleek architectural design with graduations of rhythms and volumes. The distinctive feature of this logistics hub in a dense urban environment is that it extends over several levels comprising logistics spaces, truck manoeuvring areas, ramps and offics stacked upon one another, intertwined. More than 26,000 sqm will be dedicated to all the functions the city needs: reception, sorting, last-mile distribution, order and delivery routes preparation, remote storage for retailers and artisans, integrated solutions for e-commerce trade flows, ec. Design flexibility allows the modular buildings to evolve with changing needs: warehouses can be converted into workshops which can then be used as office space and vice versa.

photo_credit Sandrine Rivière — Sandrine Rivière

AREP Group's mission:

Construction of an urban logistics and offie hub, incorporating storage facilities for reception and dispatch together with offie spaces. Comprehensive service from project inception and concept design through to practical completion.

Environmental metrics and solutions – EMC2B:

Energy

• High thermal performance

• 7,300 sqm of photovoltaic panels

Materials

• Timber superstructure and cladding from reclaimed materials

• Sleek and reversible building structure

Carbon

• Construction phase designed to limit nuisance: waste management, including emissions and liquid waste

Climate

• Green spaces designed as rain gardens

• Reduction of the albedo through the greening of the north-facing façade