Jun 12 2007
Construction work for the ThyssenKrupp Quarter in Essen began at 11 a.m. on Tuesday, June 12, 2007 with the symbolic breaking of ground by the Executive Board Chaiman of ThyssenKrupp AG, Dr. Ekkehard Schulz.
In his speech in the presence of North Rhine-Westphalia Premier Dr. Jürgen Rüttgers, Lord Mayor Dr. Wolfgang Reiniger, the Honorary Chairman of the ThyssenKrupp Supervisory Board Prof. Berthold Beitz and the Supervisory Board Chairman Dr. Gerhard Cromme, Schulz spoke of a “very special event." “This groundbreaking, together with the Berthold Beitz Boulevard, not only marks the start of a new future for ThyssenKrupp in Essen, it also stands for the further development of the city and this district, and it symbolizes progress and not least economic growth and success."
The project by ThyssenKrupp was a sign of Germany's attractiveness and competitiveness as a business location, continued Schulz. “We are playing an active part in transforming the image and structure of the Ruhr."
Explaining the reasons for concentrating the ThyssenKrupp Group's head offices in Duisburg and Essen, Schulz said: “ThyssenKrupp and its two predecessor companies have their roots in the Ruhr and that's why we have a special bond and a special commitment to this region. The Group employs over 30,000 people in the Ruhr alone and more than 50,000 in the whole of North Rhine-Westphalia. The responsibility we feel for the region is shown not least by the fact that we are training more than 2,500 young people in North Rhine-Westphalia."
ThyssenKrupp AG is planning and building this ThyssenKrupp Quarter in Essen on an inner-city site measuring over 20 hectares. The ThyssenKrupp Quarter will provide workspace for more than 2,000 employees and will include both the new ThyssenKrupp Headquarters and further office and administrative buildings of the Group. In addition, the plans include a multi-functional facility featuring the ThyssenKrupp Academy and a conference center, a hotel and further amenities with a total gross floor area of around 100,000 m². The ThyssenKrupp Academy is a major part of the ThyssenKrupp Quarter. As a training and communications center it will provide further education for the roughly 2,500 top executives of the Group worldwide, with the support of recognized universities.
The quarter is to be built by 2010 to a design by Chaix & Morel et Associés, Paris / JSWD Architekten und Partner, Cologne, and will be marked by modern architecture. Last year, ThyssenKrupp held an open architectural competition in which over 100 national and international architectural offices took part.