The concept for the Med Uni Campus Graz is based on the integration of work, teaching, and leisure spaces on a shared inner-city site. The project implements a clearly structured ensemble of coherent yet differentiated buildings, taking various requirements into account as far as possible. Openness, accessibility, and communication play important roles here.
The campus is characterized by the clear placement of the volumes, which creates an exciting interplay between buildings and open spaces, between public and non-public uses, and thus a high potential for identification in the urban context.
In terms of their content requirements, some of the uses go beyond the classic campus concept—be it in the scientific area due to the requirements of medical research, or due to the lively public traffic.
Historically, the university faced significant logistical challenges due to the decentralization of departments across Graz. The primary setback was overcoming this fragmentation. The project responds to these diverse requirements primarily by vertically staggering the utilization areas. As a contemporary response to the local microclimatic parameters, narrow, longitudinally orientated structures were developed to ensure the greatest possible supply of fresh air into the Graz basin.
The spatial organization is defined by a clear hierarchy of functions. The central areas for teaching, such as lecture theatres and the auditorium, were built on two storeys, with the so-called campus level above as an important distribution level from which the institutes, laboratories, and research areas are accessed.
A pedestrian and cycle bridge on the campus level connects further teaching areas, the canteen, and the administration. This has made it possible to realize a superordinate network of footpaths and cycle paths, to which the University Hospital Graz is also connected, successfully turning the campus into a natural part of the surrounding urban fabric.
The project’s identity is anchored in its technical performance and modularity. The building masses are subtly accented through a uniform facade design featuring elements in eight different shades of grey that form a "pixelated cloud" pattern. Beyond its technical logic, this aesthetic approach serves to dissolve the monumental scale of the institutional volumes, making the high-density campus feel more approachable and human-scaled. By reflecting the changing light and weather conditions of the Graz sky, the moving facade creates a dynamic, visually engaging backdrop for the daily lives of students and researchers. This modular grid ensures long-term flexibility for maintenance and adaptation.
Structurally, the project prioritizes sustainability and resource conservation, evidenced by its ÖGNI (Austrian Sustainable Real Estate Association) and DGNB (German Sustainable Building Council) Platinum certification. The construction utilized low-pollutant materials and advanced technical systems, including a massive geothermal system (221 bored piles and 119 deep probes) and solar thermal systems. This integral energy concept achieved a 36% reduction in Global Warming Potential compared to standard research buildings.