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Architects: Blouin Tardif Architectes
- Area: 13400 ft²
- Year: 2010
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Photographs:Steve Montpetit
Text description provided by the architects. Situated in an industrial sector near Pierre-Elliott Trudeau Airport and intersecting highways, this commercial building stands out for its efficient architecture, simple forms, and colourful envelope. Fournitures Sélect specializes in the sale, rental, and maintenance of equipment used in post-damage restoration; it also provides training on this equipment. The building includes a showroom, customer service counters, a classroom, offices, a repair workshop, and a warehouse.
The exterior cladding panels of the project form an immense blue-tinted mosaic, bestowing the status of mega-object on the building and making the company noticeable in the midst of a grey-toned environment.
The showroom is visible from the road thanks to a double-height glass wall. With the exception of the reception counter, which is in the company colours (echoing the exterior envelope), most of the interior spaces are low-key: white walls and ceilings, polished-concrete floor, a strategy that highlights the business’s colourful industrial equipment. The layout of the interior was designed so that customers could quickly “read” the spaces, at the same time separating public areas from those for employees. Circulation is thus clear and efficient.