The State Secretary of the North Rhine-Westphalian Ministry of Science, Gonça Türkeli-Dehnert, today performed the symbolic ground-breaking ceremony for the replacement of the new textile hall on the Mönchengladbach campus. With the construction of the new textile hall, the Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetrieb NRW (BLB NRW) is starting the modernization of the renowned Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at The Hochschule Niederrhein.

The Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology at The Hochschule Niederrhein is located on the campus in Mönchengladbach in the context of a long historical tradition of the regional textile industry. Architecturally, the Webschulstraße campus is characterized by its industrial brick buildings from the early 20th century. The existing buildings are an expression of pride in the regional textile industry. It is characterized by a loving and robust materiality, which means that it is still confidently present within the urban landscape today as a witness to the industrial heritage. A special reason for Gonça Türkeli-Dehnert, State Secretary in the Ministry of Culture and Science of the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, to hold the symbolic ground-breaking ceremony for the new building today together with other guests from politics and administration as well as those involved in the project.

State Secretary Türkeli-Dehnert: "The Hochschule Niederrhein is getting a wonderful new building. We need excellently equipped universities for outstanding teaching education and research. The new building will further strengthen the renowned and promising Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology and make the university even more attractive for the brightest minds. The entire university landscape in North Rhine-Westphalia will benefit from this. This is where the specialists of tomorrow are being apprenticed. The state is very happy to support the construction of the textile hall as quickly and efficiently as possible. I wish everyone involved every success!"

First milestone for the textile campus

The new replacement building for the textile hall at the Mönchengladbach university site marks the start of the renewal of the entire complex. The aim is to create a functional network of research and teaching buildings across the entire campus. Innovation and sustainability will characterize the use by The Hochschule Niederrhein: The modern technical center for textile finishing of the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology will move in as early as 2025 with machines for low-emission, digital production on an industrial scale. Students, as well as partners from industry and science, will learn the foundation course of coloring, finishing or coating textiles in this new building, while also gaining direct access to innovation and research such as water-free plasma treatment or textile drying with hydrogen. With this building, the largest faculty for this discipline in the whole of Europe can build on the textile tradition and at the same time make an enormous contribution to a solid apprenticeship and research for a strong textile industry in the future. "We are delighted that the redesigned textile campus will provide us with excellent conditions for research and teaching education and thus further increase the attractiveness of the Mönchengladbach campus for students and employees," says Professor Dr. Fabienne Köller-Marek, Chancellor of The Hochschule Niederrhein.

Sustainable university construction

"In the coming years, we will be implementing many construction projects here on a limited area in order to create optimal conditions for the faculties. As BLB NRW, we are providing sustainable space for research and teaching education," emphasizes BLB NRW Managing Director Gabriele Willems. The new replacement building will be built sustainably. Apart from the basement and the staircase, the building will be constructed using solid wood. The advantages of this construction method over a reinforced concrete structure are that it is lighter and has better thermal insulation properties. Recycled clinker bricks will be used for the façade of the new textile hall. By reusing recycled clinker bricks, CO2 emissions can be saved compared to newly produced bricks. According to the manufacturer, modified manufacturing processes and concrete formulas will also reduce CO2 emissions by around 30 to 50 percent in the shell construction. The roof will be greened and equipped with a high-performance photovoltaic system.

Window to research

The special feature of the new replacement building will be its transparent design. As a window to research, it will make university activities visible along Rheydter Strasse and thus strengthen the urban perception and identity of the campus. The four large windows allow passers-by a view into the textile hall. In addition to the large window front on the first floor, a strip light in the upper part of the façade provides sufficient light in the teaching rooms. "The Hochschule Niederrhein is one of our most important partners when it comes to positioning Mönchengladbach as the textile research, development and production location of tomorrow. This is made clear by joint projects such as Textile Factory 7.0, but also by the many bright minds that the university trains every day to become the specialists of tomorrow. With the construction of the new textile hall, the state and the Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetrieb NRW are contributing to this success story. I am very pleased about the architecturally appealing and ultra-modern university building whose construction we are initiating today," emphasizes the Lord Mayor of Mönchengladbach, Felix Heinrichs.

Further renovation steps for the entire complex

The new replacement building is a useful addition to the campus and marks the start of the expansion of the Faculty of Textile and Clothing Technology. After completion, the spinning mill will move into the new building so that further sub-projects can start on the Mönchengladbach campus. The vacant listed spinning mill will then be completely renovated. Parts of the spinning mill and the former textile finishing facility will be demolished, but the basic building fabric will be retained. The spinning mill as a research and teaching building will also be modernized and upgraded in terms of energy efficiency. Newly designed green spaces will also create a high quality of stay for students and lecturers. Once completed, the modernized spinning mill and the new building will provide the faculties with a total of around 2,500 square meters of usable space with state-of-the-art conditions for research and teaching education.

About Bau- und Liegenschaftsbetrieb NRW (BLB NRW)

BLB NRW is the owner and lessor of almost all real estate in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia. With around 4,000 buildings, a rental area of around 10.3 million square meters and annual rental income of around 1.5 billion euros, BLB NRW is responsible for one of the largest real estate portfolios in Europe. Its services include the areas of development and planning, construction and modernization as well as the management and sale of technically and architecturally highly complex properties. In addition, BLB NRW plans and implements the civil and military construction measures of the Federal Republic of Germany in North Rhine-Westphalia within the framework of federal construction. BLB NRW employs more than 2,800 people at eight locations. Further information can be found at www.blb.nrw.de