Award win for Terminal 1, Saint Exupéry Airport - Lyon

The RSHP French team were in Paris yesterday, collecting on behalf of the practice a Trophée Eiffel for the steelwork on Terminal 1, Saint Exupéry Airport – Lyon in the Travel category. The prize ceremony organised by the French steel industry (Construir Acier), took place at the Eiffel Tower. The jury led by Architect Francis Soler, praised the project on several levels, stating, amongst other things: “The building, circular and compact, seduced with its constructive elegance.”

The awards help to publicize varied and significant architectural works, produced in whole or in part from steel. The Trophée Eiffels are a national distinction, awarded by an independent jury to works built in France designed by architects without restriction of nationality.

“To have Lyon airport win an Effiel Trophee confirms that intelligent, elegant architecture is possible on a restricted budget and that great poetry can inhabit the seemingly utilitarian. Beautifully detailed, the building addresses several technical challenges. The prize is also testament to great teamwork and cross-disciplinary collaboration.’
Stephen Barrett, Project Partner RSHP.

Using standard steel profiles, the slender structures of the roof link the volumes of the terminal with a dynamic visual net, lifting the exceptionally generous canopy that over sails the building to provide shelter and shading, welcoming the traveller with improved passenger facilities.