Insights into everyday university life at Campus Feuchtwangen
Guided tour with the “Unabhängige Bürgerschaft Feuchtwangen”
Last Sunday the “Unabhängige Bürgerschaft Feuchtwangen” (UBF) had gathered for a guided tour of the Campus Feuchtwangen with almost 30 interested people.
Laboratory engineer Oliver Abeld started the tour by explaining the special features of the plus-energy educational building in the outdoor area: “The facade made of native Douglas fir wood is untreated but still very durable due to the clever construction. The alignment of the photovoltaic system (PV) on the roof in three cardinal directions ensures a uniform electricity throughout the day. ”
Imressed faces were made when hearing about the energy source used for the heating : “The heat pump uses the energy fence to draw energy from the environment and the solar radiation. At lower outside temperatures, the freezing process in the ice tank serves as an energy source. Pipes inside serve to exchange energy”, says Oliver Abel.
Campus coordinator Dr. Gerd Hofmann then gave an overview of the study and research content at the branch office: “The Energy and Building Technology (EGT) degree programme as part of the Bachelor’s program Sustainable Engineering Sciences deals with the planning, construction and operation of buildings. Resource conservation and high efficiency are always the key factors. ”
The Master’s program Smart Energy Systems (SES) deals with the increasing decentralization of diverse energy sources such as biogas, PV and wind. “The challenge is to intelligently link these different sources and to, for example, react to fluctuations in solar radiation”, continues Dr. Hofmann.
We are also involved in future energy concepts together with the municipal utilities. “In the context of decarbonisation, we are also dealing with the increasing number of electromobility. Here, intelligent solutions are needed too to cope with the increasing demand. Connections and grids are adequately secured. We need much more flexibility in this area in the future, but this does not come at the expense of needs. We are also training our students for this. ”
During the visit, many questions about studying in Feuchtwangen were answered.
Oliver Abel comments on the current housing situation: “So far we have been able to accommodate all the students. In addition to the placement via the ad exchange on our own homepage, we have received support from the Bavarian BauAkademie. But at the latest, when the course of study goes into the second round next year and we get as many students as we do, we need a long-term solution. ”
“For EGT, we have just over 20 new students, and for SES, there are even over 40. The SES students are mainly from India”, says Dr. Hofmann, commenting on the current figures. “Mobility is of course also a hot topic, here we can only pass on the concerns of our students. Whether the solution is train reactivation, car sharing or a higher-frequency busshuttle is not up to us to decide in the end . ”
The presidents of the UBF Thomas Heidecker and Maximilian Jacobs were pleased with the high interest and confirmed the added value for the city of Feuchtwangen and the region. “It’s great that young people come to Feuchtwangen through the university!” says Maximilian Jacobs.