Sillon industriel

The Sillon industriel (sijɔ̃ ɛ̃dystʁijɛl, "industrial furrow") is the former industrial backbone of Belgium. It runs across the region of Wallonia, passing from Dour, the region of Borinage, in the west, to Verviers in the east, passing along the way through Mons, La Louvière (Centre-region), Charleroi (Pays Noir), Namur, Huy, and Liège. It follows a continuous stretch of valleys of the rivers Haine, Sambre, Meuse and Vesdre, and has an area of roughly 1000 km2. The strip is also known as the Sambre and Meuse valley, as those are the main rivers, or the Haine-Sambre-Meuse-Vesdre valley, which includes two smaller rivers. (French: sillon Sambre-et-Meuse or sillon Haine-Sambre-Meuse-Vesdre). It is also called the Dorsale wallonne, meaning "Walloon [industrial] backbone". It is less defined by physical geography, and is more a description of human geography and resources. As heavy industry is no longer the prevailing feature of the Belgian economy, it is now more common to refer to the area as a former industrial belt. Around two-thirds of the population of Wallonia lives in the area – over two million people. Its main stretch is sometimes called the Charleroi-Liège valley, which connects Charleroi and Liège. Some see it as a Walloon metropolis, although it is linear rather than multi-directional sprawl. History of Wallonia#Industry The sillon industriel was the first fully industrialized area in continental Europe, experiencing its first industrialisation wave from 1800 to 1820. Its industry brought much wealth to Belgium, and it was the economic core of the country. This continued until after World War II, when the importance of Belgian steel, coal and industry began to diminish. The region's economy shifted towards extraction of non-metallic raw materials such as glass and soda, which lasted until the 1970s. The days of prosperity were gone, however, and a trend of unemployment and partial economic dependence on the formerly poorer Flemish Region began, and continues to this day.

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Un hôtel au pied du barrage. Réaffectation des logements ouvriers de la Grande-Dixence (VS)

Perché à 2140 m d'altitude, le bâtiment s'ouvre sur le panorama de la vallée et offre une proximité immédiate avec l'oppressant barrage. Ses caractéristiques exceptionnelles méritent d'être investies par une affectation hôtelière dont la qualité principale serait l'isolement au coeur des montagnes. La passerelle qui dessert les hauts du bâtiment est enrichie par un pavillon et utilisée comme entrée principale. La circulation se fait ensuite par de grands escaliers “creusés” dans la masse des chambres. Ils serpentent dans le bâtiment à la manière d'un chemin de montagne et relient les espaces communs: salle à manger, bar et bibliothèque, piscine et spa. Ces espaces, aux différentes hauteurs et proportions, font apparaître la structure métallique. Ce monde introverti est couronné par une surélévation vitrée en toiture qui accueille un restaurant et un bar. Elle déploie une vue panoramique tout au long des saisons, et ses fenêtres coulissantes offrent la qualité d'un espace en plein air lors des beaux jours. En 1953, le temps consacré au chantier était très bref. Pour cela, chacun des panneaux qui composent la façade a été préfabriqué dans la vallée avant d'être apposé sur la structure métallique. Si sa matérialité semble venir d'un site industriel, la façade n'en est pas moins élégante. Ces derniers éléments constituent la principale valeur matérielle du bâtiment, c'est pourquoi il est primordial de les conserver dans leur intégralité. Les performances thermiques de la façade et des fenêtres sont toutefois améliorées afin d'offrir un confort adapté aux tolérances actuelles.

2017

Borinage

The Borinage (bɔʁinaʒ) is an area in the Walloon province of Hainaut in Belgium. The name derives from the coal mines of the region, bores meaning mineshafts. In French the inhabitants of the Borinage are called Borains. The provincial capital Mons is located in the east of the Borinage, but there was a great sociological difference between the inhabitants of Mons and the Borains of all the villages around Mons. "From the 18th century to 1850, the economy of thirty municipalities in the Borinage was founded on coal mining.

Liège

Liège (liˈɛʒ,_liˈeɪʒ , ljɛʒ, li.eːʃ; Lîdje liːtʃ; Luik lœyk; Lüttich ˈlʏtɪç) is a major city and municipality of Wallonia and the capital of the Belgian province of Liège. The city is situated in the valley of the Meuse, in the east of Belgium, not far from borders with the Netherlands (Maastricht is about to the north) and with Germany (Aachen is about north-east). In Liège, the Meuse meets the river Ourthe. The city is part of the sillon industriel, the former industrial backbone of Wallonia.

Sambre

The Sambre (sɑ̃bʁ; Samber ˈsɑmbər) is a river in northern France and in Wallonia, Belgium. It is a left-bank tributary of the Meuse, which it joins in the Wallonian capital Namur. The source of the Sambre is near Le Nouvion-en-Thiérache, in the Aisne département. It passes through the Franco-Belgian coal basin, formerly an important industrial district. The navigable course begins in Landrecies at the junction with the Canal de la Sambre à l'Oise, which links with the central French waterway network (or did, until navigation was interrupted in 2006 following structural failures).