PM Network - July 2015

for its signature silhouette, the Eiffel Tower is synonymous with the city of Paris, France. When a renovation project required two wind turbines to be added within the landmark’s frame, project managers were able to install them while keeping the tower’s iconic figure intact.

And that wasn’t the only unique project accomplishment. Stakeholders from the Société d’Exploitation de la Tour Eiffel (SETE) and the office of the Mayor of Paris also made it clear that the turbines couldn’t be lifted with cranes, which could damage the 126-year-old tower. In addition, the project needed to accommodate the flow of revenue-generating tourists during business hours. This meant the team needed to find ways to do the most intrusive work at night—without disturbing residential neighbors.

The project, which was completed in February,
was part of a two-year, € 30 million renovation that
was also charged with adding LED lighting and solar
panels to the first floor of the tower. The turbines
were required to generate only enough energy to
power the tower’s first-floor commercial areas,
which include a restaurant, a gift shop and a histori-
cal exhibit. Although the total is less than 1 percent
of the overall energy that the tower consumes in
a year, it helps nudge Paris toward a citywide goal
to reduce greenhouse gas emissions 25 percent by
2020 and 75 percent by 2050.

The project was part of multiple green initiatives in France less than a year before Paris is scheduled to host the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference in November and December. For instance, in March, France introduced a law that requires plants or solar panels to be installed on the rooftops of new buildings in commercial zones.