PUBLIC BUILDINGS

Dear Readers,

Whenever educational institutions have been in the public eye in the last two years, discussions about compulsory masks or a lack of digitalisation have usually been the catalyst. But it won’t stop there. In its recent study on municipal schools, the Bundesgütegemeinschaft Instandsetzung von Betonbauwerken concluded that schools in Germany are often not up to date, especially in terms of energy efficiency. Most school construction measures are currently planned in Hamburg, Berlin and Stuttgart. Our project selection on public buildings gives an impression of how much potential lies in this building task, how many individual and committed concepts are flowing into educational institutions – from day-care centres, to schools and universities, to a dog grooming school (!). The bad news is that due to the armed conflicts in Ukraine, we are facing demands that are difficult to foresee – both with regard to our education system and the construction industry. Not comparable to the situation in Ukraine: interior design and architecture offices from Kiev, with whomwe have been in contact about planned publications, report with poignant clarity about their personal situation. We have printed some of the original correspondence starting on page 10. The illustrations separating the sections of the issue were designed by artists from Lviv, Kharkiv and Kiev and draw attention to the situation in their home country. Finally, some good news regarding public buildings: the Stuttgart 21 railway station project is making progress! On the 400-metre-long construction site, 20 of 28 supports have already been concreted. Interested visitors were able to get an impression of the future underground station concourse during the open days over the Easter holidays. Press spokesman Michael Deufel gave us an exclusive advance tour of the famous construction site, which is scheduled for completion in late 2025. We will not give up hope!

Best wishes
Petra Stephan, Dipl.-Ing.
Chief Editor
Architect