1000 New Lecture Hall Seats for Winter Semester
NRW Minister of Science, Svenja Schulze christens the new lecture hall building at RWTH Aachen. The Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetreib NRW invested 11.9 million Euros from the state's University Modernization Program.
After almost two years of construction, NRW Minister of Science, Svenja Schulze, christened the new RWTH Aachen lecture hall building in the Prof.-Pirlet-Straße on Monday, October 1, 2012.
The Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetrieb NRW (BLB NRW) invested about 11.9 million Euros from the North Rhine Westphalia University Modernization Program into the building. The Aachen branch of the BLB NRW served as the contracter and was responsible for the construction of the 1,950 square meter large lecture hall center.
"Good teaching and research need a tailored spatial environment. For this reason, NRW is investing in the modernization and renovation of its universities," emphasized Minister Schulze during the opening. "Five billion euros are flowing into the university construction till 2015 through the University Modernization Program. Starting 2016, our efforts will continue through the University Building Consolidation Program", said Schulze. Aside from the minister, the hosts, RWTH Aachen Rector Professor Ernst Schmachtenberg and Klaus Heine from the Aachen BLB branch, welcomed the treasurer of the city of Aachen, Annekathrin Grehling, BLB Executive Director Rolf Krähmer, and architect Marlies Hentrup-Furhmann as well as numerous guests from politics and administration, university, and the industry.
The opening of the building, which took place in time for winter semester 2012/13, is a milestone for RWTH Aachen to manage the double class cohort. "The new lecture hall building provides a total of over 1000 lecture hall seats for initial relief of the situation and offers optimal conditions for learning and teaching," said RWTH Aachen Rector Ernst Schmachtenberg.
The construction of the building designed by Aachen architects Hentrup, Heyers, and Professor Furhmann, began in November 2010, next to the central RWTH Aachen parking garage. It offers two large lecture halls with about 700 seats, a seminar room for 80 people, as well as offices and side rooms. The largest computer lab at a German university is available to students here with five classrooms supported by PCs and over 300 computer work spaces. 11000 active users from the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering will be able to regularly use these work spaces.
Exhibitions and other events can take place in the foyer of the ground floor. In a small, glassed café, students, lecturers, and employees have access to cold and warm beverages. The building is heated and cooled through long-distance heating and cooling from the highly efficient new combined heat and power station on Seffenter Weg. Recuperators ensure the industrial operation of the ventilation facilities in the lecture halls, and seminar and computer rooms.
An eye-catcher in the building is the art piece in the stairwell, a relief made up of different flat and three dimensional wood and metal elements, the patination of which reminds the viewer of objects that have been in use. The state held a competition "Art and Building", which Berlin artist Katja Strunz won.