Dimensions and architecture
The SMS group Campus consists of five individual modules offering a total of 1,500 modern workplaces on a site spanning approximately 66,000 square meters. The Campus plaza has a diameter of 65 meters and the buildings are 16 meters high. The total gross floor area, including the overground and underground areas and the equipment floor, is approximately 44,000 square meters.
All modules are connected by a membrane roof, which has a diameter of 82 meters and spans the entire plaza. Despite its impressive size, it looks very light, creating a bright and largely weather-protected space in the center of the SMS group Campus. The wire rope support structure is held only by the outer thrust collar and requires no additional support. The membrane roof has 40 air-filled cushions made of EFTE foil.
The reception building faces the city, the building with the company restaurant opens up onto a green landscape, and the two buildings facing the plant are connected by an open staircase to the offices close to the production facility.
The multi-storey parking lot has around 1,500 parking spaces and is located in close proximity to the main entrance.
Each floor of the building provides space for a total of 100 workstations. A conference center with a large, divisible hall accommodates up to 300 people for meetings and conferences. The office buildings also have a wide range of social facilities that make the SMS group Campus more than just a place to work.
Sustainability
Primary energy demand is well below statutory requirements. The green roofs retain rainwater to bind dust and improve the microclimate. More than 100 trees on the SMS Campus and extensive plantings also contribute to the microclimate.
With the relocation of employees from Düsseldorf and from the existing building in Mönchengladbach to the SMS Campus, we are taking a significant step forward in terms of sustainability and environmental responsibility. The closure of the Düsseldorf site allows us to save substantial costs associated with maintaining and operating an additional building. However, these savings go far beyond financial benefits and make a meaningful contribution to reducing our ecological footprint.
Every square meter of office space that no longer needs to be heated, used, lit, constructed, or eventually demolished immediately saves CO2 emissions. This helps us to directly address global climate challenges. Consolidating our resources at the SMS Campus enables us to maximize the efficiency of our infrastructure while minimizing energy consumption.
Energy efficiency
The heat demand of the SMS Campus is kept low by exceptionally good thermal insulation of the opaque building components (roofs and exterior walls, i.e., materials that are impermeable to other influences) and by excellent glazing and frame insulation. Fresh air is supplied via ventilation systems with a highly efficient heat recovery system.
There is one principle that takes efficiency in the generation and transmission of energy a giant step forward: cogeneration. The SMS Campus has a combined heat and power plant with absorption chillers that run on gas. Usually, fuels such as coal, natural gas, or environmentally friendly biomass are burned to generate electricity and heat. The resulting heat drives a turbine and thus generates electricity or heats a medium that is then distributed to households via a heating network. Efficiency levels are considerably higher when both are done together, that is, when the same combustion heat is used to produce both electricity and usable heat. By employing the energy needed to obtain electricity and heat, utilization rates of more than 90 percent can be achieved.