Construction of a new building in the campus of the Technical University of Liberec will begin in May

Liberec - The new building of the Technical University of Liberec will provide space for a simulation center for emergency medicine or a university library, with construction starting in May. The complex, costing nearly 490 million crowns excluding VAT, will replace the inadequate building F2, which the university demolished last year. The university will cover approximately 124 million crowns of the construction costs, with the rest funded by European and state funds, said Rector Aleš Kocourek to ČTK today.

"We are about to build one of the largest buildings on campus, and undoubtedly it is one of the last major investment constructions that we can place in this area at all," added Kocourek. The new pavilion will have four wings and a covered central atrium. The building will consist of five above-ground floors, gradually receding from the third floor, and the project also includes a photovoltaic power plant on the roof.

The new building will also be funded by the Liberec region and the Liberec Regional Hospital. "The contribution from the region and the hospital will come once we complete the building, it will go towards equipping the simulation center for emergency reception, including equipment and software, so that full-fledged simulations of various cases at the emergency reception can be conducted. 30 million crowns will be from the Liberec region and 30 million from the hospital," added the rector.

The University of Liberec originated from the original College of Mechanical Engineering established in 1953. Three blocks of classrooms, laboratories, offices, and heavy workshops - E1, E2, E3 - were built by the university in Husova Street from 1957 according to the design by architect Eduard Adamíra from Stavoprojekt. They were completed in 1965. The two outer blocks are still serving their purpose today, while part of the workshops in the middle block was converted into a university kindergarten and student club between 2013 and 2014. "However, the building was no longer operationally suitable," said Vice-Rector for Campus Development Dagmar Vojtíšková.

The school therefore allowed the building to be demolished, and Metrostav CZ will construct a new building in its place in 18 months. "The start of classes is planned for February 2029," added the vice-rector. Then, part of the design department of the Faculty of Textile Engineering and primarily the Faculty of Economics, which is currently located in the center of Liberec in building H, will move to the new building. The university wants to keep building H for future development projects, but it will need renovation. According to Vojtíšková, there is also planning for the renovation of building F3 and the reconstruction of the cafeteria in building F2 on campus.

The Technical University has invested more than 1.5 billion crowns in campus development over the past 15 years. The largest project was the institute for nanomaterials, advanced technologies, and innovations (CXI), costing nearly 800 million crowns. In 2014, the university completed the new building G for about 400 million crowns, which houses classrooms, laboratories, and importantly, a large hall that had been missing for the university in Liberec until then. The school has also invested tens of millions in building renovations. Currently, around 7,000 young people are studying in Liberec, with ten percent being foreigners.