The construction site, mirror of civilizations

At a time when building sites are all too often overshadowed by their deliverables, the "Le Meilleur Chantier de France" competition, organized by ESTP Paris' Passion BTP student association since 2023, seeks to enhance the value of this founding moment in the act of building. By introducing a national ranking based not solely on the technical prowess or monumentality of the structure, but also on the values it embodies - innovation, safety, sustainability - this competition redefines the criteria for constructive excellence. Competitive bidding, ranking and defining the plus or minus are more a matter of criteria that are sometimes empirical, but just as interesting to observe from a human sciences perspective. While not claiming to be a strictly scientific exercise in history, this second instalment of our saga of building sites highlights emblematic examples from the point of view of the perception and/or media coverage to which they have been subjected.