A symbolic groundbreaking ceremony on July 16, 2025 marks the start of Mainz University of Applied Sciences’ innovative construction project LUCY. This project marks the university’s first own construction project and will serve as a central meeting place and hub for students.
LUCY, an interdisciplinary building project, will mainly be used for student co-working and will also provide space for lectures. It complements the university’s new campus ensemble, which includes the existing building on Lucy-Hillebrand-Straße and the new building, and will be erected in a prominent location between the campus building, the parking deck and the streetcar stop. Completion is scheduled for the 2026 summer semester.
“We are delighted to begin a new chapter in the history of Mainz University of Applied Sciences with the groundbreaking ceremony for LUCY,” explains Prof. Dr. Susanne Weissman, President of Mainz University of Applied Sciences. “This innovative building project will serve as both a central hub for our students and a symbol of our commitment to sustainable construction. LUCY also represents the successful outcome of interdisciplinary collaboration.”
Focusing on sustainability
The project emphasizes sustainable building materials and construction methods, combining traditional materials like timber, clay, and straw with modern techniques such as ground screw foundations and a PV green roof. This interdisciplinary research project will investigate how these building materials affect indoor climate while implementing a digital sustainability monitoring system. The project is led by Nina Gommans and Daniel Ercin from the School of Engineering, with support from Prof. Gero Quasten, Professor of Drafting and Energy-Optimized Building at Mainz University of Applied Sciences.
A project by students for students
The concept for LUCY is based on the winning designs from the “Students in the box” student competition held in the summer semester of 2022. The designs by Johanna Hofmann, Niklas König, and Justus Nixdorf were further developed into a collaborative concept that focuses on flexibility and transparency.
