In Reflets Magazine #144, Ludovic Dewaele (M07) looks back on his career as an architect, from social housing in Vietnam and municipal services in Africa, to private and public facilities in France. 

" It's quite atypical – an architect studying at ESSEC. However, we do need managerial skills in agencies, as we manage projects, teams, budgets and even companies." 

Ludovic Dewaele began advocating this transdisciplinary approach to his profession shortly after he started working for various architectural agencies in Bordeaux, when he was recruited by a development cooperation NGO that was addressing housing and rehousing issues in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam. Long before obtaining his master's degree from the business school, he was already exploring unconventional approaches: "I joined the only local office that was developing a global approach with specialists in community development and microfinance, engineers and hydrogeologists ..."

Together, they devised ways to improve the living conditions of as many people as possible. "One of the things we did was design 'capable housing'. Here’s the principle: first, socio-economic surveys were carried out on the future beneficiaries of the project to ascertain their income-generating activities and debt capacity; on the basis of these results, houses that met their real needs were then designed, combined with loans that they were capable of taking on.” He provides the following illustration: "For example, if the resident had a job requiring the use of a rickshaw, a room would be provided on the ground floor and corridors would be adapted in the building. And if he or she had to work in an indoor market, premises would be built nearby. As another example, we also took geomancy (feng-shui) into account, as it is central to the country’s culture". 

At the time, this was a ground-breaking concept. One of the projects, located in the second district of Ho Chi Minh City and similar to the Iquique project designed by the Elemental agency in Peru, was awarded the French High Committee for International Cooperation (HCCI) prize in 2001. "These concepts are fitting responses to the issues of quality and affordable housing in their specific contexts. Today, this principle has been extended and widely adopted in our part of the world in an approach that is also known as assisted ‘self-build’ or ‘participatory construction'. These homes are delivered on a wind- and water-tight basis; they are connected to water, electricity and transport systems, and have an assigned address but are only equipped with basic interior fittings and finishings, which reduces the acquisition cost. They can be fully fitted out and extended over time according to one's means (featuring a double height room to enable the subsequent addition of a mezzanine, for example)." 

Change of framework

After six years, Ludovic Dewaele returned to France and joined ESSEC. "I emerged one year later with nearly a dozen offers of permanent contracts in varied fields ranging from project management and the remediation of industrial wasteland to regional planning... I wanted to broaden my horizons, and I wasn't disappointed!" 

He opted for a project management post with the French Development Agency. "After South-East Asia, I found myself with an African portfolio. I travelled to Senegal, Kenya and Djibouti to monitor the financing of real estate and urban operations with municipalities, local authorities and banks. I was impressed by my colleagues' knowledge of the countries in which we operated. But I missed working in the field too much." 

As a result, he switched from bureaucracy to providing project management assistance to clients during their construction projects with IDéAM, a consultancy belonging to an engineering group. "I was in charge of programming and feasibility studies, or monitored the building and restructuring of hospitals, nursing homes, courthouses, high-rise buildings, and so on."

High-quality work

Also a member of the RICS (Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors) and co-leader of the RICS South-West group in France, Ludovic Dewaele eventually set up his own architectural practice – Luwae Architectures – in 2013. "I'm based in Bordeaux but I also work in Angers, Poitiers, Paris and even Thailand, on collective or individual housing, offices or public facilities (health, sports, education establishments, etc.) – both new builds and renovations – and can work in English or French." 

At its peak, the agency employed five people. Today, however, the context is particularly difficult. "Many customers have to abandon their projects because the lending conditions are getting tighter. COVID and the war in Ukraine are disrupting supply chains and generating considerable uncertainty about timing and prices. The construction economy is changing every fortnight." 

Another paradigm shift is the environmental transition. "As experts, we have a responsibility to design buildings today that will be adapted to the conditions of tomorrow." Indeed, certain solutions exist that fall within the architect's remit. "We already have the know-how: soft densification versus land take, renovation or transformation versus demolition, passive versus high-tech solutions, customised design on a case-by-case basis versus a project-catalogue-based approach, personalised versus standardised solutions... They've been talking about this in schools of architecture since the 1990s. It’s possible to meet the requirements for sobriety without forsaking quality. We need to adopt a different approach." 

Attitudes and mentalities also need to change. "In France, there are half as many architects as the European average. The use of our services must become more natural, just as the perceptions of our profession – which is both highly regarded (the number of applicants to schools of architecture is constantly rising) and frequently avoided – must change. As I see it, the architect is an ally for the investor, the user and the community. We know how to turn your ideas into reality and find ways to cover all the technical, regulatory and financial constraints. We are the only actor who defends our client's project, by adopting a global, inclusive and cross-cutting perspective." 

Learn more:
luwaearch.com   

Here is a free online translation of the article… click here to get the next issues (in French)!

Interview by Louis Armengaud Wurmser (E10), Content Manager at ESSEC Alumni 

Translation of an article published in Reflets Magazine #144. Click here to read the issue (in French). Subscribe here to get the next issues (in French).