Research

Services

The CSTB guides the stakeholders of public pools and recreational waters in the process of mastering the complex interactions between energy, water, air and materials. Backed by 20 years of experience, the CSTB applies its multidisciplinary areas of expertise – safety, durability, performance, health and comfort – in building, pool and systems. Alongside public and private stakeholders, the CSTB works on the design (new construction and renovation) and operation to determine which problems may arise, to provide decision-making support and optimize project management. The CSTB takes your needs and practices into account, together with the technical and economic constraints of your projects, regulatory obligations and sanitary requirements.

Recreational waters
Contents

Assistance with the design of buildings and pools (new construction and renovation)

Safety and durability
  • Optimized design of buildings and swimming pools
  • Durability of the structures
  • Choice of materials (durability and efficiency)
  • Preventing corrosion and slippery surfaces
Energy, Water and Air
  • A comprehensive approach to managing energy, water and air
  • The thermal quality of pools and buildings
  • Forecasting consumption (outlook of the EPC - Energy Performance Contract)
  • Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
  • Water treatment and effectiveness of disinfectants
  • Hydraulic behavior of the swimming pool
  • Air treatment
Wellbeing and functional quality
  • Submerged lights and general lighting
  • Acoustics
Regulatory support
  • Sanitary rules
  • Thermal regulations
  • Performance-based approach according to the ESSOC (public confidence) law
  • Organizing and tendering for public works contracts for buildings and infrastructure, with a life-cycle cost approach to projects: design, construction, operation/maintenance contracts and construction and operation/maintenance contracts

Sizing the systems

Optimization
  • Air / water / energy systems aiming for more efficiency and comfort
  • Water treatment and water disinfectant systems meeting the sanitary requirements

Reduction of network load losses

Durability and performance of submerged lights and lighting systems

Optimizing the operation

Troubleshooting
  • Building pathology
  • Sanitary quality of air and water
  • Deviations in billing for energy, water and treatment agents
Running the building and its facilities
  • Methods and tools for managing energy, the sanitary quality of water and air (alerts, performance and decision-making indicators, optimization, etc.)
  • Measuring and predicting airborne emissions of disinfectant sub-products
  • The summer and winter comfort of swimmers, in wet and dry areas (comprehensive performance-based approach to energy, water and air)

Resources

In situ performance measurements
  • Instrument-based monitoring (indoor ambient conditions, thermal and chemical parameters, fluid consumption, etc.)
  • Expert data analysis (in the laboratory, or development of digital processing chains)
Performance prediction
  • Testing in an experimental swimming pool (1:10 model of a public pool)
  • Physical and statistical modeling (thermal, hydraulic, chemical, acoustic and airflow)