Technical University of Munich: GALILEO building officially opens on the TUM Garching research campus

The Garching research campus of the Technical University of Munich (TUM) has a new, central conference and service center. Officially opened on Tuesday, the approximately 200 meters long GALILEO building is among other things home to the Science Congress Center, with seminar rooms and a main auditorium that holds up to 1300 people.

The TUM Institute for LifeLong Learning, the Munich Data Science Institute as well as the TUM Georg Nemetschek Institute all enjoy a central location at GALILEO. The building complex features office space, shopping, restaurants and a health club; GALILEO also has a hotel and an apartment house for convenient accommodation of guests right at the heartbeat of science.

TUM President Hofmann very pleased about the new building
TUM President Thomas F. Hofmann stated at the opening ceremonies, “I am very pleased by the official opening of GALILEO, taking a central position on the Garching campus not only physically, but functionally as well. The conference center provides unique opportunities to recalibrate our knowledge in personal interaction with the international academic community.”

He went on to point out that GALILEO also creates social meeting places with restaurants as well as sports, cultural and recreational possibilities in order to create fresh mental space for new ideas and to support personal networking. Hofmann added that the Courtyard by Marriott Hotel and the Stellaris Apartment Hotel would in the future house guests from all around the world right at the heartbeat of science.

Thanks to President Emeritus Herrmann
Hofmann also had praise for the great dedication on the part of his predecessor, Prof. Wolfgang A. Herrmann, who worked tirelessly to facilitate the construction of GALILEO: “Without our President Emeritus there would be no GALILEO today. I am convinced that his visionary planning will raise the development of our research campus to a new level. The Campus will gain quality of life and will therefore become a truly lively arena for the exchange of knowledge.”

Private investment of 250 million euros
Private investor Oliver Soini ultimately conducted the major project with a budget of approximately 250 million euros. The real estate parcel was provided by the State of Bavaria as a lease in perpetuity. TUM is one of the main tenants on the premises. GALILEO’s basement level shopping area will in the future offer services such as a health club, bistros, cafés and restaurants to students and employees of the Campus.