LAYHER, an innovative scaffolding system for the restoration of the Military School

Located in the 7th arrondissement, the École Militaire is a group of buildings, constructed under Louis XV, housing various military training facilities. Commissioned to restore the facades and roofs of Building 38 of the École Militaire, the DUBOCQ company called on LAYHER for the scaffolding part (design, technical monitoring, delivery).   Scaffolding using an innovative and highly original technique   On building 38 - 225 linear meters long, 10,50 meters wide and 13 meters high at the ridge - a facade scaffolding is used both for the renovation of the stones, but also for the repair of the roof and also protects the site from bad weather thanks to a rather specific umbrella. The LAYHER design office designed a very innovative scaffolding system generating savings and time savings for its client and anticipating the needs of the teams working on site. The scaffolding, installed by LAYHER's assembly subsidiary, Echafaudage service, is made up of 5900 m² or 177 tonnes of Universel®. It was first erected in October 2010 on a little more than half of the building (120 linear metres), in its centre to ensure the first phase of the works. Then, this equipment will be dismantled and reassembled at the ends of the building for the following phases. The scaffolding is covered with a 3400 m² LAYHER Couvralu® umbrella, prefabricated on the ground and then craned. It therefore only covers the structure installed for phase 1, i.e. 1/3 of the building (74 linear metres). At the end of the first phase (March 2011), it will be split into two parts and will slide towards the two ends of the building using a special roller system. With this system, the LAYHER Couvralu® umbrella is easily moved on its support using two pulleys. The challenge for LAYHER was to design a system that could absorb the non-parallelism of the facades and to address this problem, LAYHER created a roller system that is unique in France, allowing it to slide also in the transverse direction (perpendicular to the rail). To prevent wind-related forces, an anti-lift device is integrated into the system. It secures the umbrella to the scaffolding, which is itself anchored to the building. There is therefore no risk of the roof lifting.   A solution focused on the economy and sustainable development   Given the large area to be scaffolded and to enable its client to save costs and time, LAYHER has therefore designed this innovative and ingenious solution which allows for phased work while also anticipating the needs of the teams working on site. This solution allows the project to be carried out with 1m² of Couvralu® instead of the 100m² which would have been necessary to cover the entire roof. It also saves time since moving the Couvralu® umbrella will only take one day compared to around 3 weeks in the case of a traditional dismantling/reassembly solution. This solution also reduces the carbon footprint of the operation, by reducing the quantity of material to be delivered.   The material used:   The COUVRALU of LAYHER is a tarpaulin umbrella system that provides protection against the elements. It is both lightweight and easy to implement thanks to the portable aluminum elements that make up its structure and its tarpaulins that ensure perfect watertightness. This is reinforced by rubber seals that prevent any water penetration. The scaffolding Universal LAYHER consists of a complete system of modular elements, assembled together by keying. It includes:

• Stackable uprights with welded discs every 50 cm, comprising 4 narrow slots and 4 wide slots
• Connecting pieces (braces) and stiffening pieces (diagonals) fitted at each end with captive key jaws which hook onto the discs
• Many accessories are available: plinths, consoles, beams, brake rollers, etc.
• A whole range of self-supporting, non-slip, wind-blocked prefabricated floors are capable of supporting very high overloads (up to 600 k/m2).

  All elements of this scaffolding system are protected by 80 micron thick hot-dip galvanization, a guarantee of longevity.     Established in France since 1980, the LAYHER company has revolutionized the world of scaffolding with innovative and safe solutions. It provides its customers with a rental stock of 35 tonnes of equipment spread across its 000 depots, as well as a design office made up of experts, consulted for the most technical projects (Maison de la Radio, Total La Mède, the Eiffel Tower, the Grand Palais, etc.) www.layher.fr