A bird's eye view of the ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ worksite
2 Mar 2015
Each component, one journey: Whether manufactured/assembled in the Poloidal Field Coils building (red, at right), assembled in the Cryostat Workshop (grey, centre), or transported along the heavy haul road (far left), the ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ components will be cleaned and pre-assembled in the Assembly Building, whose steel structure is under construction in the centre of the image. To the right of the image, what is currently an empty lot will be filled by the ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ cryoplant and magnet power conversion buildings.
The 42-hectare ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ platform is filling up. As the basement-level walls of the Tokamak Complex are created, work is about to start on some of the auxiliary buildings of the Tokamak Complex—the Radio Frequency Heating facility, the Control Room, and the Site Services Building.
As work progresses on the walls of the Tritium Building on the far side of the Tokamak Pit, the columns of the Assembly Building are rising. When completed, the structure will measure over 60 metres. (The brown footprints in the Assembly Building basemat indicate the future position of giant assembly tools.)
The area used for storage to the left of the Tokamak Pit will one day host the ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ Hot Cell Facility. At right, white pillars rise along the Assembly Building basemat, framing out the space that will be used for pre-assembly operations for Tokamak components. At the centre of the Tokamak Pit, it's easy to see where the machine will be assembled ...
The ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ Headquarters building seems to mark the frontier between two worlds: the rural countryside of upper Provence and the steel and concrete reality of the ÌÇÐÄÆƽâ°æ Project. The recent extension to the building is clearly visible to the left; behind the building, a yellow warehouse (one of four temporary storage facilities) is also visible. Parked just in front is the 87-tonne electrical transformer that was delivered on 14 January.
