"CELSIUZ" gets its key
The new Saxony5 Co-Creation Lab at the HSZG was presented to the public for the first time. Minister President Michael Kretschmer also informed himself about the progress made in the transfer lab.
A hundred years ago, over a thousand people worked at the former “Schubert” factory in Zittau, producing yarns made of cotton, sewing thread, and warp yarns. Which worker back then would have imagined that the university would now be setting up a lab there focused on supply infrastructure?
With this in mind, the Saxony5 project team at the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences cordially invited guests to the Mandau-Höfe on November 21 for the key handover ceremony for the new Co-Creation Lab CELSIUZ.
Following welcoming remarks by Professor Tobias Zschunke (Vice Rector for Research at HSZG and Saxony5 Project Manager at HSZG), Michael Kretschmer (Prime Minister of Saxony), Thomas Zenker (Mayor of Zittau), and Dr. Markus Binder (Chair of the Lausitz Economic Initiative), Jana Rudolph (Administration, Berliner Grundstücke GmbH) handed over the keys to Karin Hollstein, Chancellor of the Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences.
Afterward, the future heart of the lab—the large experimentation and continuing education control center—was unveiled. Here, entrepreneurs and researchers can come together to visualize, simulate, and test processes, as well as to develop new products and services.
Afterward, guests were able to try on VR headsets or observe artificial intelligence in action for damage detection at a medium-sized company. Both demonstrations stemmed from projects at the Institute for Process Engineering, Process Automation, and Measurement Technology, which was thus able to effectively showcase its research.
In the adjacent room, colleagues from the “Life and Technology” project used artistically elaborate shadow plays to demonstrate how the expansion of the Mandau-Höfe into a diverse hub for knowledge and technology transfer can be further advanced. If you are interested, please contact Ms. Sabine Scholz (Head of the Research Department) for more information about this project. We are delighted by the high level of interest, media coverage, the support from the Saxon Real Estate and Construction Management (SIB), and above all by the encouragement from our guests to continue on this path and make knowledge transfer visible and tangible.
In the afternoon, the day’s second event drew university staff and entrepreneurs for a first look at the facilities. Over CHEESE & mulled wine, attendees had the chance to present their own research projects, business ideas, or upcoming plans in an elevator pitch. The basic idea behind the format is to present one’s idea to a conversation partner as good and vivid as possible in the one minute available—much like the time spent in an elevator. Afterward, the guests in attendance networked with one another over gingerbread, cheese appetizers, and late-autumn mulled wine.
Over the next few months, there will still be plenty to do on the CELSIUZ premises—a server room and two small offices will be built in the rear section, and electrical wiring, lighting, and data cables will be installed.
We plan to begin operations by the middle of next year at the latest and will be available at CELSIUZ as the scientific point of contact for the Saxony5 Transfer Network on topics related to supply infrastructure—including electricity, water, heating, cooling, gas, and data. In the future, CELSIUZ will warmly welcome staff from Zittau/Görlitz University of Applied Sciences and their partners from industry and society as a place for generating ideas, sharing simulation technology, and fostering inspiring collaboration.
The team led by subproject manager and recent Science Slam winner Dr. Clemens Schneider (YouTube video) would like to take this opportunity to extend its heartfelt thanks to everyone who contributed to the preparation and execution of the event.
Text: Martin Kunack/Kristin Sprechert
Upper floor