As part of the overall refurbishment of the 1st floor, the Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (the Eiffel Tower operator) is extending its commitment to sustainable development by installing two vertical-axis wind turbines on the monument.
Each 7 metres high and with a 3-metre span, both wind turbines were deployed 127 metres above ground on the 2nd floor, the most suitable location for optimal windage.
Both wind turbines together can produce up to 10,000 kWh per annum, and this will cover the equivalent energy need of the 1st-floor shop.
For the Eiffel Tower, one of the principal goals of the first floor's renovation responded to a strong wish to reduce its ecological footprint in the context of the City of Paris Climate Plan. The approach used when refurbishing the 1st floor of the Eiffel Tower was exemplary in terms of sustainable development, even though there are no actual “High Environmental Quality” references regarding the monument.
The positioning of the widows in every pavilion on the 1st floor was reviewed without affecting the visual comfort provided by the panorama. This protection against “solar discomfort” will help cut heat absorption by over 25% in the summer, reducing energy use for air-conditioning.
In addition, virtually all lighting on the first floor of the Eiffel Tower uses LEDs.
The roof of the Ferrié Pavilion has been equipped with solar panels deployed across a 10-m. area. They cover about 50% of hot water requirements in both pavilions. The Ferrié Pavilion also features a rainwater retrieval system which supplies the toilets.
The pavilions also have heat pumps to ensure the temperature remains balanced.
Lastly, on January 1, 2015, when renewing its electric power supply contract, the Eiffel Tower chose GEG, a company from Grenoble, to supply the monument with 100%-renewable energy.
Key figures:
Wind turbines: Height 7 metres – Span 3 metres – Colour grey
Eiffel Tower’s yearly electric power use: 6.7 GWh
Electric power use breakdown:
1st: Air-conditioning and heating; 2nd: Lifts; 3rd: lighting
Current height (including antennae): 324 metres
Total weight: 10,100 tonnes
Lighting system: 336 projectors (sodium lamps) delivering 600 watts
Amount of lightbulbs used for sparkling display: 20,000
Attendance: over 250 million visitors since the opening in 1889.
7,097,302 visitors in 2014
Sur la même thématique
-
In collaboration with Ateliers de Paris, Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE) is awarding three projects for the first edition of the Eiffel Tower design prize. On the occasion of the 130th anniversary of the monument, this competition for creating objects related to t...
-
It’s 9:10 am and French athlete Anouk Garnier, ambassador of the Paris 2024 volunteer program, has just broken the world rope climbing record by reaching the top of a 361-foot rope. And not just anywhere! The two-time winner of the World Obstacle Course Racing Championship (OC...
