Bertrand, Director of Heritage and Internal Services, shares his passion for motor sport with us. Portrait of a speed enthusiast.
Tell us about yourself
Hi, Bertrand Razan, I joined the University on 1 September 2001. Before coming to university, I worked in the building and public works sector. I worked on roads and other networks and on building construction; I was involved in all kinds of trades. In 2001, I passed a competitive examination to become a heritage technician at UAG in Guadeloupe and I was recruited in French Guiana. From 2001 to 2007, I was posted to the Saint-Denis campus as head of heritage. I was involved in setting up the technical department at the French Guiana campus. I helped to structure the technical service, which evolved over the years from SGPI (Service de Gestion du Patrimoine Immobilier - Property Management Service) to DPSI (Direction du Patrimoine et des Services Intérieurs - Property and Internal Services Department) following the events of 2013 and the creation of the University of French Guiana, of which I am currently the Director.
What is the DPSI?
The DPSI is the cross-disciplinary department responsible for managing and operating property assets. It manages all building and property-related activities on all the campuses of the University of Guyana: Troubiran, Saint-Denis, Kourou and Saint-Laurent. We deal with a wide range of issues, from fire safety to all the regulatory prerogatives for which the President of the UG is responsible. Lift maintenance, emergency lighting, normal lighting, air-conditioning, ventilation, painting, roofing, and so on. Everything concerning the building and its immediate environment.
What does the job of Director of the DPSI entail?
The job of Director of the DPSI involves both ensuring the smooth running of existing facilities and planning for the future by building for the future. For example, we are currently working on extension projects on the Bois-Chaudat campus of the Kourou IUT and on the construction of new buildings at Troubiran, such as the General Administration building and the Research building - resource centre (labs and practical training rooms).
We are looking at prospective studies for the construction and future of the University in Saint-Laurent. In this prospecting phase, we are analysing and asking questions: What? What? How? What? When? When? How much? For which audiences? We have to think of everything.
Being a Director also has a managerial aspect. I manage a team of nearly 30 people. Apart from the technical and theoretical side, there's the managerial side, which takes up a lot of time and involves making sure that the whole team works in harmony and in good conditions.
After talking about work. We're going to talk about hobbies. You have several passions, quite different. Tell us about your passions. What are they?
Yes, I have a few passions. The main one is speed and motor sport in particular. I'm a rally driver and I take part in the Guyana motor racing championship, where we have around ten events a year. I'm also passionate about driving, and I'm part of an association called 2AM (Automaîtrise), which runs courses in car driving and competition driving in French Guiana, to help our trainees drive better and share the road more effectively.
I also love percussion. I occasionally play the drum with several Gwo'ka groups in particular. Gwo'ka is both the drum and the Guadeloupean percussion rhythms most often found in the Léwoz...
How did these passions come about? When did you start?
These passions came to me when I was very young. I've always loved percussion, the festive side of it, the atmosphere that surrounds it. It's also a chance to get away from it all and think about something else.
Flying is all about concentration, but it's also a way of clearing your head and thinking about other things. It allows you to relax and get away from the daily grind, because the job is quite demanding.
These passions act as pressure-relief valves, allowing us to breathe and recharge our batteries.
I've been driving since I was young. I like speed, I like cars, I like driving. So it was quite natural for me to take up motor racing. My brother also raced cars, and I was his technical assistant, so that's where my passion for driving and especially speed racing comes from. I've always been passionate about speed, and I've always had sports cars: 205 GTI, Golf GTI, 306 S16, all pretty fast cars. I've always been told that I drive quite nervously. I've always felt a bit of a driver at heart, I've always loved it: looking for the best trajectory, the right angle, going as fast as possible, as well as possible, the adrenalin... It's a passion for speed!
I started racing in 2004/2005. In 2005, I officially started competing in French Guiana. Between 2007 and 2011, I did some in Guadeloupe, where I was able to do some big rallies like the Rallye des Grands Fonds, the Rallye Karukera and a few hill climbs. I didn't do the most legendary ones, but I'll certainly be going back to do the others. I've been racing cars for over 10 years now.
What would be your dream car? Do you still have any challenges to meet?
I'd like to win the Antilles/Guyane championship and why not win the title. The main objective is to be champion of French Guiana. I've been on the podium a few times, so the aim now is to win the trophy. Then we'll see about the rest. We recently set up an association to run races at regional, national and international level. In particular with our neighbours like Surinam and Brazil. It would be great if that could happen!
