As a result of this incident, the area surrounding the building has been closed off and an independent external expert has been commissioned. After an initial inspection, Bernhard Hartenthaler, the expert appointed by the Campus WU GmbH to assess the cause of the damage, says, “It appears to be the result of defective installation by the acting company,” and that it most likely occurred during maintenance work. As a first step, the company that installed the façade is required to immediately repair the damage under the warranty agreement. The work will be supervised closely by experts.

The assessor has also been commissioned to inspect the entire façade of the LC building. He will be inspecting both construction and installation of the façade panels. First results are expected to be available in mid-February. Further measures to be taken will be decided based on this report.

Entrances to the LC Building Closed Off

During the inspection and repair work, the area around the library building will remain fenced off. In addition, the entrances to the building will be provided with protective shields to allow the building to be used while the comprehensive inspection work is conducted. Until these are erected, the LC may be accessed only through specially marked entrances on the west and east sides of the building. Tomorrow, Friday, the side entrance through the Library Café will be reopened, and by the beginning of next week, the protective shields over the main entrance will be complete, allowing the use of these entrances again. All teaching and learning activities can continue without interruption.

 

Contact:

Mag. Cornelia Moll
press relations officer
Tel: + 43-1-31336-4977
cornelia.moll@wu.ac.at

WU Press release: Fallen Panel on WU Library Building as PDF