The new pre-clinic and research centre were erected on the traditional science-centred site of the Charité in the heart of Berlin, embedded in the urban development context of the surrounding 19th century structures. A main four-storey building with three wings and a superimposed L-shaped structure as a recessed top floor form the sculptural design and represent a very visible symbol for research.
In its height and cubage, the new structure corresponds to the adjacent laboratory building of the Max Planck Institute. The positioning of the two buildings relative to one another leaves a generous grassed space between them. This space extends as far as the Clinic for Internal Medicine and includes an area that is yet undefined by urban development. From here there are views of the architecturally listed hospital buildings.
The dovetailing of pre-clinic, research centre and teaching facilities makes use of synergies and promotes communication and interaction between these different disciplines. The laboratory units – divided up according to institutes and allocated to the three wings of the structure – offer space for research. The generously proportioned central hall offers plenty of scope for formal and informal scientific dialogue. Here on the staggered floor the façade opens out toward the ‘Window of Science’ with its vast glazed area.