Behind the scenes of Docks 76, in Rouen: a place that lives 24 hours a day, seven days a week
Through Fabien Massin
Published on
After Eurêka Fripe in Amfreville-la-Mi-Voie, second episode: Docks 76, a shopping and leisure center in western Rouen, which we visited with her, Audrey Anne, also director of the Saint-Sever center, the cousin of the left bank of the Docks.
A place of life with 500 people
The Docks 76 center was created in 2009, in the context of the city’s emerging development in the west. With a total surface area of 37,500 meters2, it includes 80 shops – including a food store, which made a comeback this year -, 15 coffee / catering outlets, a cinema, a gym and a play area for children. It is a real place of life which employs 500 people in total.
There is thus the management team, made up of Audrey Anne, a management assistant, a person in communication / marketing and a technical and safety director (common to the two centers). There are also providers who provide daily: cleaning, maintenance, security, parking and reception companies. “All of this forms the extended team,” emphasizes Audrey Anne.
Every day, everything starts very early, at dawn, in fact life never stops… “There is a human presence in the center 24 hours a day, seven days a week”, confirms Audrey Anne. At six o’clock, the cleaning agency operates what professionals call the “clearing” of the center: all the floor is washed, as well as the windows, depending on the day. Then, throughout the day, the agents must ensure general cleanliness, from the toilets to the parking lot to the garbage cans, knowing that such a place brews a lot of waste.
Caring all day
On the technical level, maintenance ensures a presence all day, to operate in a preventive manner, or to intervene to resolve specific problems, on leaks or doors that no longer work, for example. They can also lend a hand to traders, if the troubleshooting remains modest and does not require calling on an outside service provider. Maintenance also plays an advisory role in the proper functioning of the center and the efficient management of energy. Particularity of the center, all the machinery for heating, smoke extraction, air conditioning, boiler, fire safety, is on the roof of the building.
The security component involves a human presence and uninterrupted video, Monday to Sunday, day and night. All operations are directed from a security PC (Control Post), where the surveillance cameras and the control of the fire prevention system are located. From there and throughout the center, officers communicate with walkie-talkies, which the management is also equipped with.
Night work
Commercial life begins at dawn, with morning deliveries, generally from six o’clock. “It happens that traders arrive even earlier, during inventories or special operations,” reports Audrey Anne. The work, too, is carried out at night. Objective: that everything be ready for the opening of the shops at 10 am. The center has already opened its doors at 8:30 am, for those who want to have a little coffee or work out in the gym. During the day, the manager goes regularly to meet the traders, to see if everything is going well, if the business is going well, and if not, to understand and to consider improvements.
At 8 p.m., the shops draw their curtains, the aisles are set to night mode, with less light, but restaurant and cinema activity continues. For the public, the center is completely closed at one o’clock. On Sundays, the center is open but it is a special day, with an atmosphere very different from other days, with aisles in night mode and the continuation of fun and catering activities. Life never stops at Docks 76 …
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