Reconstruction and Refurbishment of the Werner Heisenberg Institute

From 1957 to 1960, the architect Sep Ruf designed the Werner Heisenberg Institute (Max Planck Institute of Physics) for the Nobel laureate Werner Heisenberg in Munich's district Freimann. The building complex comprises a main building, a lecture hall, a cafeteria, an experimental hall and two residential buildings for directors of the Institute. During several construction phases and over several years, reconstruction measures in terms of energy efficiency and fire protection were carried out as well as structural alterations for meeting current scientific standards. Due to a lack of lab rooms, offices were converted into laboratories. For an interim usage and in accordance with heritage requirements, an office container system was set up between the main building and the experimental hall. Moreover, the single-storey service building housing the cafeteria as well as additional rooms was refurbished in terms of energy efficiency. In addition to the reconstruction measures, the refurbishment particularly focused on the alterations necessary for complying with structural fire protection regulations.

All measures were realized in close coordination with the Monument Preservation Office. The fact that the Institute building is the only non-residential building by Sep Ruf that has maintained its original use is of particular relevance to the Monument Preservation Office.