Le patrimoine architectural du Crédit Agricole et de la Mutualité sociale agricole en Languedoc-Roussillon

Abstract

The Crédit Agricole group (French bank) and the Mutualité sociale agricole (social protection scheme for workers in agricultural professions) have constructed headquarters and numerous branches in the regions in the 1970’s and 1980’s by employing international or local architects. This significant and varied heritage in Languedoc-Roussillon, represents a whole part of architecture history, namely that of offices. But today, these large buildings are confronted with several problems: obsolete design regarding the energy saving requirements, oversized buildings for the agricultural sector which employs fewer and fewer people, current use of offices and space allocation per workstation, in a time where remote working is increasing, a phenomena further accelerated by the pandemic. The future of these buildings is therefore under threat.

Keywords

• architecture
• 20th century
• offices
• Crédit Agricole
• Mutualité sociale agricole
• energy performances