The campus restructuring process provides an opportunity for the reinterpretation of the part of Cologne on the right bank of the Rhine, with the IWZ acting as a central and connecting building block. The new IWZ appears as a loose, urban assemblage made up of compact buildings; as an open system, it is possible to effect gradual development based on the variable institute modules. The urban grading of the campus is fine enough that the buildings to be preserved can be incorporated naturally and coarse enough that components can exist as independent elements within the surrounding block development. At the same time, identifiable addresses and recognizable points are created within an attractive grid of public spaces. Because the construction fields are created using a modular system, the scaffolding of the spaces and ground floor zones has a special meaning. The transparency and material experience gained in the halls and workshops become architectural and typological topics in the sense that an "inner surface" with a public character is created. The base, halls, workshops, entrance areas and public use areas are integrated into the ground floor zones and unfold to the outdoor space. With its network of open spaces, the new IWZ area forms a permeable urban building block that allows residents of adjoining parts of the city to enter it from all sides. At the same time, important urban connections have been systematically updated and integrated into the system routes on campus. Thoroughfares within the IWZ have been non-hierarchically developed. The open space is based on a shared area, which is crossed by all paths and expands at strategic points to form rest and leisure areas. The permeability of the system increases the amenity values of the area for both the students and people who visit the area from the adjoining neighborhoods.
