Uploaded on 2016-10-04 by Damien Duchene
This picture is from Lyon's newest museum, the "Musée des Confluences". It is a very impressive structure, with large cantilever and huge glass facades (on the other side, not visible in the picture). The concrete of the base was produced locally, as there are big cement factories nearby, using rocks from the Rhone river bed. The glass and, more importantly, the immense quantity of steel necessary for such a structure were however imported. The North-Western part of France used to have a big steel production, but they have been closing one by one for the past 3 decades, so it is most likely that the steel has been imported from lower-cost countries like China or India. In an old city like Lyon, with most of the city center made of old stone buildings, it can be surprising. However the goal here was an impressive and high-tech building, hence the choice of materials.