Messe Düsseldorf has reached the halfway point in one of the most ambitious construction projects in its history. On Friday 14 September the large construction site on the River Rhine witnessed the topping-out ceremony for the new Hall 1.
Comprising the new Hall 1 and the state-of-the-art south entrance, the complex has been constructed in a bid to strengthen Messe Düsseldorf as an international meeting point for industry, and also as an economic factor for Düsseldorf as the capital of North Rhine Westphalia.
The traditional topping-out speech was given by the construction managers, Thomas Schulte and Holger Meyer from Osnabrücker Köster, from the building site of the new southern section. The audience included Messe Düsseldorf management, tradesmen, construction workers and exhibition centre staff involved in the construction project, as well as representatives of government and administration, the supervisory councils of Messe Düsseldorf and Düsseldorf Congress and aa number of architects.
The project, which will be completed by autumn 2019, includes the new multifunctional Hall 1 with meeting rooms, the glass-enclosed new south entrance with a translucent illuminated canopy and an adjacent underground car park. Hall 1 will be 12,027m2, offering space for up to 10,000 people. In addition, the first floor will have six glass-enclosed meeting rooms, each with 200m2 and space for 198 people. One of these rooms will protrude into the foyer of the new south entrance, which will provide 2112m2 of event space. In front of this, 20 metres high and covering 7800m2, will be a canopy over a plaza with taxi ranks, public transport connections and an entrance to the new underground car park. This forecourt will also be suitable for events.
“The building complex will increase the international attractiveness of Messe Düsseldorf even further and will strengthen its function as a meeting point for a wide range of industries,” said Werner M. Dornscheidt, president and CEO of Messe Düsseldorf. “This will put us in the best possible position.”
The building project also includes a major facelift for the Congress Center Düsseldorf (CCD), which is directly connected with Hall 1, and its audience capacity will be boosted to 16,000 persons.
Hilmar Guckert, CEO of Düsseldorf Congress, said: "The new building, its increased capacity and its improved ambience will make the CCD even more suitable for the requirements of major conventions, conferences and corporate events. It’s an important step into the future of the international convention business for Düsseldorf.”
The new building will also give the City of Düsseldorf an additional architectural highlight. It will be the new face of the exhibition centre towards the city and also the northern endpoint of the city’s silhouette from the river Rhine.
The new southern section forms part of the Messe Düsseldorf Masterplan 2030 with its many construction and redevelopment plans designed to ensure that the exhibition centre remains attractive and competitive. These include a number of completed projects, such as the new Halls 6, 7 and 8, the new north entrance and the complete overhaul of seven halls.
Werner M. Dornscheidt said this was a crucial investment into the future: “In this way, our premises will be further adjusted to suit demand and the needs of our customers, while also increasing the service factor.”
In all, Messe Düsseldorf is investing €650 million in the implementation and the new southern section alone is costing €140 m.
For regular updates on the construction project visit https://www.messe-duesseldorf.com/construction_timeline
