Investment offensive of Gdańsk University of Technology. Projects for nearly PLN 0.5 billion | Gdańsk University of Technology

Through a wide-ranging investment strategy, Gdańsk University of Technology aims to create the most important research and teaching center in the northern part of the country, at the same time fitting in with the most important challenges of today's world.

– We are looking at it in the long term. On the one hand, we want to significantly improve the conditions for conducting research and classes with students in the historic area of our campus, as well as open up to new spaces in the areas adjacent to the university – says prof. Krzysztof Wilde, rector of Gdańsk Tech. - The implementation of our investments will make cooperation with business and industry even wider and more effective on our part, and our campus will gain new, green spaces serving the academic community and the residents of Gdańsk.

– Recent years and the favorable situation on the investment market combined with the possibility of successfully applying for support for projects implemented by EU subsidies, have translated into the biggest investment boom of our university in its post-war history - emphasizes Mariusz Miler, Gdańsk Tech Chancellor. – Currently, Gdańsk University of Technology has three large infrastructure projects in its investment portfolio, as well as several medium and smaller ones, which will translate into a significant improvement in the research and teaching capabilities of the university in many aspects.

– The potential and opportunities represented by Gdańsk University of Technology are invaluable for our region - says Mieczysław Struk, Marshal of the Pomeranian Voivodeship. - We try to regularly support ambitious and forward-looking initiatives of the university, because we are very well aware that the dynamic development of Gdańsk Tech means new opportunities and possibilities for the entire Pomerania – he adds.

What are these investments, what do they serve?

Gdańsk Tech Competence Center STOS

CC STOS (Smart and Transdisciplinary knOwledge Services) is currently one of the largest infrastructure investments in Pomerania, and also one of the largest in the IT sector in Europe. The center, whose heart will be a "supercomputer" with enormous computing power, will enable the collection, processing and archiving of huge data sets and the performance of complex simulations in scientific research. It will also be the new seat of the Gdańsk Tech IT Center.

The facility is to be ready for use in the second half of this year. The construction cost is PLN 156 million, of which PLN 90.1 million comes from an EU subsidy under the European Regional Development Fund, obtained through involvement in the project of the Marshal's Office of the Pomeranian Voivodeship and the Pomeranian Development Agency (ARP).

The total cost of the investment is approximately PLN 230 million - the difference is due to the addition of specialized equipment to the facility planned by the university. 

Gdańsk Tech Eco-innovation Center

The Eco-innovation Center (EIC) is an extremely important investment not only for the university itself, but also for Pomerania. It will be the main research and development base for the most important specializations of the region, i.e. construction, eco-energy and environmental protection technologies. It is here that Gdańsk Tech scientists and students will develop innovative solutions that will meet the greatest challenges of today's world in the field of broadly understood environmental protection.

The building of the Eco-innovation Center is being built on the campus of Gdańsk University of Technology in the vicinity of the Faculty of Civil and Environmental Engineering and the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Ship Technology. The cost of its construction is about PLN 100 million, and it is to be completed in the second half of 2023.

Revitalization of the Gdańsk Tech Hydromechanics building

In mid-March this year Gdańsk University of Technology will officially open the revitalized Gdańsk Tech Hydromechanics building adjacent to the University's Main Building. Built in 1912 and measuring just over 100 meters in length and nearly 20 meters in width, the building is one of the oldest on the campus, and has recently undergone a thorough modernization. The cost of the works amounted to approx. PLN 16 million, and the project was implemented with the support of an EU subsidy, which amounted to less than 40% of the costs of the entire project.

Thanks to the comprehensive revitalization, the building has gained new functions that will serve both the academic community of Gdańsk Tech and its guests. Inside there are: modular and fully computerized auditorium (which can also serve as a conference hall), didactic room designed to develop solutions in the field of modern education, welcome office for Gdańsk Tech guests from Poland and abroad, exhibition space, 2-level restaurant, shop with gadgets and Gdańsk Tech promotion products as well as office spaces.

Historical building on Sobieskiego Street

Direct neighborhood with the Gdańsk Tech campus, unique architectural and urban values, and above all the need for further, dynamic development of the university - these are the main reasons why Gdańsk University of Technology bought the former building of the Faculty of Chemistry of the University of Gdańsk at 18 Sobieskiego Street in Gdańsk. The transaction was worth PLN 24 million.

Gdańsk University of Technology has already started to gradually renovate the building and the adjacent area, and then it will develop it for its own needs, extending the scientific and research potential of the university and its scientists. Gdańsk Tech also intends to revitalize green areas in the purchased plot and give them a park function. The total amount of money that will be needed for the revitalization of the building and the adjacent area - with obtaining additional funds, including EU funds - is estimated by the university at about PLN 40-50 million.

The former Faculty of Ocean Engineering and Ship Technology in a new version

Built at the end of the 1970s, the building of the former Faculty of Ocean Engineering and Ship Technology (now the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Ship Technology) has been thoroughly modernized in recent months. As part of the work for which the university obtained nearly PLN 7 million, thermomodernization of the facility, installation of new window joinery and change of the facade color, which is now in white and gray colors, have been done.

The authorities of the university and of the Faculty of Mechanical Engineering and Ship Technology are simultaneously implementing investments in research equipment and modernization of laboratories at the faculty, which is to translate into the implementation of even more ambitious research projects and a significant improvement in the comfort of conducting classes.

Construction of the Gdańsk Tech sailing marina on the Sobieszewska Island

The university conducts investments not only within its campus, but also in other parts of the city. In the vicinity of the bridge that connects the Sobieszewska Island with Gdańsk, Gdańsk Tech is currently building a sailing marina on the Martwa Wisła (Dead Vistula). The investment is being built on a plot of approximately 6.2 thousand square meters.

The investment will be used mainly for conducting field research and didactic classes with students, but it will also expand the sailing offer on Sobieszewska Island, which is becoming a more and more popular destination for both Gdańsk residents and tourists.

The cost of the investment is approximately PLN 4.5 million - generated from the university's own funds, and the work progress is now 50% (as of January 2022). The marina is to be ready at the end of the year, and it will receive its first guests in the next sailing season.

Modernization of dormitories and creation of a Gdańsk Tech kindergarten

Gdańsk University of Technology is constantly working not only to improve the quality of education and research, but also to provide housing facilities for Gdańsk Tech students and university guests. Currently, reconstruction of the student house no. 13 at 34 Do studzienki Street in Gdańsk is under way, the cost of which is PLN 13.5 million.

As a result of the renovation, part of the ground floor will be changed into a kindergarten, where places will be allocated with priority to Gdańsk Tech employees and students. The space around the building will also be redeveloped, with new, green places to relax and spend time together for residents of Gdańsk Tech dormitories.

Photos: Maciej Buczeń / Gdańsk University of Technology

Visualizations: Gdańsk Tech materials.