HPT – renovation for plant biology and workshops
The HPT building comprises teaching and research facilities, workshops and offices. Built in 1967, it is one of the city’s listed Steiner buildings. It will undergo renovation work in 2022 for maintenance and change of use.
After renovations are complete, the Institute of Molecular Plant Biology will move into the HPT building. With the move of the institute from the Zentrum campus to the Hönggerberg campus, the entire Department of Biology will be united on the Hönggerberg site. The research groups will take up residence in the south wing of the building, which is located immediately behind the HPI building. After the building has been stripped back to its shell, this wing will be fitted out with the latest laboratory infrastructure.
The renovation of the HPT building also means that the workshop of the Department of Physics, which is currently spread over two buildings and produces mechanical workpieces for teaching and research at ETH Zurich, can be brought together in the “workshop wing” on Wolfgang-Pauli-Strasse. This will enable synergies and efficient working processes.
The work on the main wing of the HPT building is restricted to access zones such as goods and passenger lifts and stairwells. The entire building will also be brought up to current standards (fire safety regulations, etc.).
One of the main objectives of the renovation work is to make the building barrier-free. The upgrading of the HPT building will provide important insights into accessibility that can then be applied to other listed Steiner buildings.
Most of the reconstruction work will take place while the building is in use; only the south wing will be vacated during this period. To provide the necessary construction site logistics for the phase that will run from May 2022 to December 2023, a construction site platform will be placed alongside the building, between HPT and HPI.