Height 9.22 m | Inaugurated 27 May 2010 Opened 22 February 2010 | |
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Type Library, workspaces, multi-purpose hall "Forum Rolex", café, food court, restaurant, offices, bookshop and parking Cost 110 millions of Swiss francs Owner École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne Town or city Écublens, Vaud (1015 Lausanne) Architectural styles Organic architecture, Contemporary architecture Similar Sauvabelin Tower, Lausanne Cathedral, Collection de l'art brut, Musée de l'Élysée, Olympic Museum | ||
The Rolex Learning Centre ("EPFL Learning Centre") is the campus hub and library for the École polytechnique fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), in Lausanne, Switzerland. Designed by the winners of 2010 Pritzker Prize, Japanese-duo SANAA, it opened on 22 February 2010.
Contents
- Map of Rolex Learning Center 1015 Ecublens Switzerland
- History
- Library
- Main functions
- Events
- In popular culture
- References
Map of Rolex Learning Center, 1015 Ecublens, Switzerland
History
Kazuyo Sejima and Ryue Nishizawa, partners of the Tokyo-based design firm SANAA, were selected as the lead architects in EPFL's international competition of December 2004. The team was selected among famous architects and even some Pritzker Prize Laureates such as Zaha Hadid, Rem Koolhaas, Diller Scofidio + Renfro, Jean Nouvel, Herzog & de Meuron and Ábalos & Herreros.
The construction took place between 2007 and 2009. It cost 110 million Swiss francs and was funded by the Swiss government as well as by private sponsors (Rolex, Logitech, Bouygues Construction, Crédit Suisse, Nestlé, Novartis and SICPA).
The building opened on 22 February 2010 and was inaugurated on 27 May 2010.
Library
The main library, containing 500,000 printed works, is one of the largest scientific collections in Europe; four large study areas can accommodate 860 students with office space for over 100 EPFL and other employees; a multimedia library will give access to 10,000 online journals and 17,000 e-books, with advanced lending machines and systems for bibliographic search; a study centre for use by postgraduate researchers will provide access to the universityʼs major archive and research collection, and there are teaching areas including ten "bubbles" for seminars, group work and other meetings and a Language and Multimedia Centre and associated administration offices.
Main functions
Events
On 2 April 2015, the press conference of Federica Mogherini (High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs) and Mohammad Javad Zarif (Minister of Foreign Affairs of Iran) following the negotiations of the ministers of foreign affairs of the United States, the United Kingdom, Russia, Germany, France, China, the European Union and Iran for a Comprehensive agreement on the Iranian nuclear programme (in the previous days at the Beau-Rivage Palace) was held in the Learning Centre.
In popular culture
Part of the 2014 film Love Is the Perfect Crime was filmed at the EPFL Learning Centre.