Academia in Germany is changing: New degree courses and learning methods are being developed. Laptops and the internet are now just as much a part of the everyday routine at university as the library and canteen. Places to relax are becoming more popular in open-plan study areas while there is a growing demand for state-ofthe- art working environments where employees and students can not only work in peace, but feel at home. Paderborn University also found that this was what their staff and students wanted and accommodated these requests in the newly constructed building. Located right at the main entrance to the university, the new building is seamlessly connected to the main block that was opened in 1972.

Its modern architecture with clean lines and generous use of windows makes for a fascinating contrast with the old building complex. The new building has been home to the university’s library and study centre since 2018. In addition to student workspaces, Building I also houses offices for the International Office and Student Advice Centre.

These various areas required sophisticated furnishing concepts tailored to their individual needs. While offices for employees required practical storage solutions, the furniture for the students to work on needed to be easily adjustable or fitted with technical features. ASSMANN had already been working with the university for several years. University project managers working on the new construction were deeply impressed by the Melle-based family business with its 80 years of experience and furniture systems boasting strong track records on quality. This made ASSMANN the first choice for furnishing the new building.

Comfortable lounge furniture

Annette Lukies and her colleagues from the Infrastructure and Commercial Facility Management team at Paderborn University had clear plans for furnishing the new build. “It’s not just the functionality that’s important to us. We want furniture that’s comfortable, aesthetically pleasing and offers our students real value,” she explained. After consultation with ASSMANN, they therefore opted for the Syneo Line, among others. Visitors to the Notebook Café can relax in the waiting area on the modern furnishings. The Notebook Café in the basement of the new building is the central information point for all technical questions.

This is where experts from the IT and Media Centre (IMT) offer comprehensive IT support. All the lounge furniture is fitted with plug sockets for charging mobile devices, so there’s no risk of low batteries. There are also RJ45-LAN ports installed in the Rondana meeting tables, to ensure a stable internet connection.

ASSMANN allowed us to tailor the different areas perfectly to suit their various requirements.

Annette Lukies, Infrastructure and Commercial Facility Management team at Paderborn University

Variety and flexibility

A few rooms away from the Notebook Café is the University Archive. It’s home to all the documents like files, index cards and books which have been collected throughout the history of the university and the institutions that preceded it. Since it was first founded back in 1972, a considerable amount of material has been collected, which calls for a manageable and space-saving storage solution. This is where the ASSMANN Allvia shelving systems with their generous storage space come in, meaning all documents have their place and are easy to access if required.

For the private archives of many students, the degree certificate is surely the most important document. For those who are about to sit crucial final exams, or are working on important homework, the study meeting space on the first floor of the new building is an important hub. The interlinked Pontis conference tables offer a spacious surface for reading materials and notebooks, and there are also ports for constant power supply here.

The wheels on the Pontis desks mean they can be easily folded away at any time, and they can even be folded and pushed together to save space if necessary, which is particularly useful if the area is being used for large meetings. If students are working in groups, then they can find plenty of space on the high tables from the Solos family. Just like in the Notebook Café, there are also the popular Syneo lounge pieces in the study meeting space, for a comfortable five minutes out from studying. They’re perfect for students to sit and exchange ideas with each other, or read before they head to their next class in the nearby seminar rooms. Incidentally, these are also furnished by ASSMANN, with furniture from the Pontis family offering a clearly structured room so that nothing distracts from the work at hand. It’s not just the students here who get to enjoy ASSMANN furnishing solutions, but the colleagues in the International Office and the Student Advice Centre too.

Their offices are fitted with desks from the Canvaro range and with Allvia shelving systems. Individually tailored planning and the variety of combinations available, meant that we could create concepts to precisely meet the needs of colleagues here. Heightadjustable desks also aid ergonomic working and mean colleagues are fimore satisfied at work. In the Student Advice Centre, it’s not just the functionality of ASSMANN furnishing solutions that is important. The furniture should look prestigious too. People seeking advice are greeted here at the stylish reception desk, VisitASS.

Ensuring everyone's tastes are catered to

Although Building I is a relatively large building with many different work areas inside, the planning and the subsequent furnishing all went according to plan for everyone involved. Long-standing cooperation has meant that ASSMANN and the group responsible at Paderborn University are now an experienced team. After working together for the ideation stage, the company from Melle only had to submit a few suggestions before the project was to everyone’s taste.

In order to ensure that the concepts met expectations 100%, the family company also delivered a selection of samples to Paderborn before proceeding. Annette Lukies is impressed with this service, “For us it was a great taster of the finished furnished space. It was nice to see how the furniture felt in the new space, and we knew very early on that we had done everything right during planning.” It only took a few weeks there until the interior furnishing project was complete.

Everything was finished in time for the start of teaching in the summer semester of 2018. “The entire project went very well, and the results really speak for themselves,” Annette Lukies sums it up. The next big project on campus is already in planning. Furnishing the new Building Y. The research building for the Institute for Lightweight Design will also be furnished with ASSMANN office furniture systems. Hopefully this won’t be the last joint project between the Melle company and Paderborn University.

Brief:
A new university building needed to be completely furnished. Besides furnishing offices, the learning and waiting areas needed brand new lounge furniture too.

Challenge:
The building offers a multitude of learning, working and relaxation spaces, which all have their own demands regarding furniture.

Project:
Furnishing new building I

Über den Kunden:
Paderborn University was founded in 1972. Now, more than 20,000 students study 67 different courses here.