Science Park Linz, Mechatronik Building by Caramel Architekten, Austria

November 07, 2009 Category: Parks, Urban Design

Mechatronik Building of Science Park Linz was designed by Caramel Architekten is the showcase building that located in Linz, Austria. The fist of five buildings to form a new science park at the Johannes Kepler University in the Austrian city of Linz has been completed. The architecture project, by Vienna architects Caramel, won the urban design competition for the site in April 2008. A further four buildings are yet to begin construction. The 160-meter steel-frame building Mechatronik forms a bridge that allows the design to incorporate the lines, curves structural. By not being static, grid-like appearance, the building seems to relax around him. The slope of the landscape has been carved to form the basement and it enables mechatronics to sit in close collaboration between the university buildings and the existing flow seamlessly into the city beyond.

The Science Park aims to attract potential researchers and corporate partnerships to the university and this goal has been carried forward into the design of the Mechatronik. The interior of 14,000 square meters includes a central window that encourages communication throughout the building and flexible, open spaces between rooms to facilitate the exchange of ideas between departments. The soft and flowing lines of the exterior of the building are mirrored on the inside, offering double-height spaces and a flexible, open design.

At a cost of about 22 million euros, Mechatronik form the first corner of a square. Once the other parts are complete, a central building will be the final phase scheduled for completion in 2014 at a cost of 80-100 million euros. The project is the largest and most expensive to take place in the region in recent years. Chosen as successor of Liverpool as European Capital of Culture 2009, the city of Linz has undergone an enormous transformation in an attempt to combine art and industry and create a vision of a modern sustainable city. The Park forms part of this scientific concept to both architecture and as a result of its function. Other projects taking place over the years have included a new media arts center on the banks of the Danube and the reconstruction of Linz Castle. photography by Hertha Hurnaus

Science Park Linz Mechatronik Building by Caramel Architekten in Austria