Architect Nadia Perigaud Cabestan is working on an ambitious library project in Paris

This ambitious project is being led by a Franco-British architectural duo comprising TVK (Trévelo et Viger-Kohler, Paris, lead partner) and Carmody Groarke (London).

With a usable area of approximately 10,000 m², divided between a 6,000 m² conservation building offering a capacity of 260 linear kilometres, and nearly 2,000 m² space for the restoration and digitisation of collections, this project marks a major step forward in the preservation of the national collections. A new, highly technological, fully robotised collection storage facility, operating in a rarefied oxygen atmosphere, will promote better preservation of documents, especially the most fragile ones. 

A new centre of excellence for the arts and crafts will also emerge in Amiens, alongside those already deployed by the Bibliothèque nationale de France at its two Parisian sites, Richelieu and François-Mitterrand.

There are several interest groups around the world, in addition to the International Federation of Library Associations (IFLA), including Designing Libraries (United Kingdom), LIBER Architecture Group (Europe), the American Library Association (United States), the Coalition for Networked Information (CNI) and other national library associations and organisations dedicated to library design.

There are also groups of architects around the world who are interested in library design. I find it interesting to participate, at my level, in strengthening existing relationships or creating new ones between these groups.

I have been working at the French National Library for nearly 30 years now, so I feel comfortable working there.

The new conservation centre at the Bibliothèque nationale de France must satisfy contemporary challenges in terms of conservation and environmental ambition. Aligned with the most demanding international standards, it aims to provide the best environment both for the preservation of each document and for the well-being of the people involved in their conservation. 

To achieve this, two buildings will be created, each designed around their respective functions. Carefully located and precisely positioned, they establish a particularly effective relationship between the storage function and all the processes necessary for the management and protection of the collection.

• Storage under controlled oxygen to reduce fire risk
• Ongoing research into MOFs (metal–organic frameworks)  
• Chaotic storage in automated warehouses

Maybe start with a benchmark .... and be attentive to the expectations of other colleagues.

On the websites of the project managers (TVK and Carmody Groake), the delegated project owner (OPPIC) and the various specialists, companies and professions involved in creating this building.