Microverse Centre opens

Three days after the decision on its funding as a University of Excellence, Friedrich Schiller University Jena officially opened the Microverse Centre Jena (MCJ) on the Beutenberg Campus. The ceremony was accepted by, amongst others, Federal Minister for Research Dorothee Bär, Thuringia’s Minister-President Mario Voigt and Thuringia’s Minister for Science Christian Tischner, as well as around 140 other invited guests. The new research building at Rosalind-Franklin-Straße 5 provides the Cluster of Excellence »Balance of the Microverse«External link with space for joint research and academic exchange.

»The designation as a University of Excellence is a great recognition for our entire university and for the work we are achieving here together. The scientific strength of our two Clusters of Excellence has laid the crucial requirements for this. With the Microverse Centre, we are now providing this excellent research with a home that opens up new opportunities for collaboration, exchange and new ideas«, says University President Prof. Dr Andreas Marx.

5,000 square metres for interdisciplinary microbiome research

A total of 55.6 million euros has been invested in the research building. Of this, the Free State of Thuringia is contributing 27.8 million euros, the federal government 20.6 million euros and the University of Jena 7.2 million euros. The research carried out by the Cluster of Excellence focuses on microbial communities and the question of how their balance is established, maintained or disrupted. To this end, »Balance of the Microverse« brings together scientists from various disciplines. Spanning around 5,000 square metres, the new building provides space for approximately 200 staff, as well as additional workspaces for doctoral candidates and international visitors. The facilities include flexible laboratories for microbiological, biochemical and optical research, as well as areas for meetings and conferences.

Just as cutting-edge as the research at the MCJ will be in future, so too was the path to getting there: »Planning using Building Information Modelling ensured that all project stakeholders worked with the same information within a digital model and were able to identify changes early on in the construction process. At the same time, we used lean management to closely coordinate the planning and construction processes, which further contributed to the successful completion of the project«, says Katrin Werner, project manager at Drees & Sommer, the project management firm responsible.

Modern architecture for research and exchange

The hybrid structure, combining reinforced concrete and timber with a timber façade, a photovoltaic system, a green roof and large thermal storage units, is designed to bring research and collaboration into close physical proximity. Researchers from the Biological Sciences, Chemistry, Geosciences, Medicine, Computer Science and Physics, as well as from numerous non-university research institutions in Jena, are involved.

»The Microverse Centre is set to become a focal point for microbiome research: a place where researchers from Jena and around the world can pool their expertise and tackle new questions together, in order to better understand how microbial communities influence our environment, our health and, consequently, the foundations of our existence. Through our research, we aim to contribute to developing solutions to key challenges facing humanity in the future. Our designation as a University of Excellence gives us the impetus to further expand this collaboration internationally«, says Prof. Dr Kirsten Küsel, spokesperson for the Cluster of Excellence.

The Microverse Centre Jena was officially inaugurated as part of the opening ceremony. Following a welcome address by the University President, Prof. Dr Andreas Marx, Federal Minister for Research Dorothee Bär and Thuringia’s Minister-President Mario Voigt delivered welcoming remarks. In two panel discussions, Thuringia’s Minister for Finance Katja Wolf, Thuringia’s Minister for Education, Science and Culture Christian Tischner, State Secretary Milen Starke, Andreas Marx, Kirsten Küsel, Georg Pohnert and Michael Rommel – one of the building’s architects – discussed different perspectives on Jena as a centre of science and the new Research Center. A symbolic tree-planting ceremony brought the inauguration celebrations to a close. Afterwards, the guests had the opportunity to explore the building and its research facilities and to engage in conversation with one another.