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Wire & Cable ASIA – November/December 2011
17
A labour of love for
the French heritage
A few hours on Eurostar and the Metro
(Parisian tube network), trying to
remember my French (I have lived in
the UK for three years now) and I finally
walked through the gold plated gate of
the majestic baroque castle from the
17
th
Century.
I have, being French, been to the great
Versailles before but in 2007 Nexans
signed, for the first time in its history,
an agreement of sponsorship to
renovate the technical networks of the
Château and Estate of Versailles.
Because protecting the building also
meant protecting the site and visitors,
Nexans expect this year to renovate
the electrical networks, meaning:
• Upgrading the medium voltage
installations
• Attaining the highest safety standards
• Modernising the electrical networks
• Reorganising the Groves
• Renovating the power system.
This we learned about from
Jean-Jacques Aillagon, Versailles’
president, Frédéric Vincent, chief
executive officer of Nexans, and
Athem’s team (the project’s design and
communication agency) as they went
through
each
stage
of
the
modernisation of the Chateau de
Versailles.
Nexans – it appears – felt compelled to
undertake the works at their own
expense, a generosity normally lacking
and out of the ordinary in this day and
age.
The other reason we were there was to
unveil the huge canvas, due to be
draped over the main court of the
castle while the work is being carried
out.
Continued on page 19
n
2007: Great Versailles Palace
Renovation of the power, data and
communications network
n
2011: Electriciens sans frontiers
Mission to improve the living
conditions
of
disadvantaged
population providing electricity
and water. Nexans will supply
50% of ESF’s annual cable needs
for low and medium votage power
cables
n
2011: The Louvre-Lens Museum
Nexans is providing the low and
medium voltage cables and data
cables for the museum’s new
project
Sponsorship