01 2011

Bilfinger Berger Magazine 8 Northern Ireland A college enriches the region | 28 Denmark Europe’s most luxurious student dorm | 38 Germany School students run their own cafeteria | 44 Ivory Coast An oral education

Inspiring , transform

ing, enriching

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Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

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Bilfinger Berger Magazine www.magazine.bilfinger.com Published by Bilfinger Berger SE Carl-Reiss-Platz 1–5 68165 Mannheim Germany Tel. + 49 (0) 621 459-0 Fax + 49 (0) 621 459-2366 www.bilfinger.com Editorial director: Michael Weber Project management: Dr. Daniela Simpson, Bilfinger Berger Bernd Hauser, agentur.zs Contact: [email protected] Design and layout: Steven Dohn, Theo Nonnen, Bohm und Nonnen, Büro für Gestaltung Photo editing: Helge Rösch, agentur.zs

SCHOOL SHOULD INSPIRE — PRIVATE ENTERPRISE CAN HELP The demands placed on our education system have never been greater. Today, schools are being tasked with substantially more than imparting knowledge — they must foster the individual potential of young people and make room for innovative teaching concepts. At many schools, the inability to meet this mandate can be attributed to the condition of the infrastructure. Classrooms are too small, furniture worn out, technology outdated. In the next ten years, according to the German In-

Cover photograph: private, akg-images “Inspiring, transforming, enriching”: subhead/claim courtesy of SERC Litho: Goldbeck Art Printing: ColorDruck Leimen Translation: Baker & Harrison, Bruce MacPherson Circulation coordination: Business Service Weber

stitute of Urban Studies (Difu), local authorities will invest

Bilfinger Berger Magazine is published in

icantly faster. Teachers and students reap the benefits —

German and English. All rights are reserved.

working and learning in a more inspirational environment.

Items by named contributors do not neces-

about €73 billion in their schools — a large sum to be sure, yet scarcely enough for the bare necessities. It is hardly surprising then, that public private partnerships (PPP) are in such great demand in the education sector. With the help of such models, school projects can be implemented not only more economically, but also signif-

sarily reflect the opinions of the publisher.

A study by KPMG confirms that students at PPP schools learn

The reprinting or electronic distribution of

particularly well and have particularly low absenteeism.

articles or excerpts of articles is prohibited without the express permission of the publisher. Bilfinger Berger Magazine is printed

Yours sincerely,

on FSC certified paper.

HERBERT BODNER Chairman of the Executive Board of Bilfinger Berger SE

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Bilfinger Berger Magazine

CU LTU RE AN D BUSI N ESS AT U N IVERSITY

LIVI NG I N A LUXU RY DORM

LEARN I NG TO BE HAPPY

STU DENTS M ANAGE TH EI R CAFETERIA

TEACH I NG WITHOUT BOOKS

2 3 4 6

22 of mind and money

34 teaching happiness

44 master of the spoken word

/// N EWS

Imprint Editorial

The success story at the prestigious

Can one learn to be happy? Ernst

Ivory Coast has been torn apart by

Contents

University of Mannheim is all about

Fritz-Schubert thinks so. The prin-

civil war. How can the country be

Kaleidoscope

reconciling differences. Business and

cipal of a school in Heidelberg has

brought back together? Storyteller

The central section of the world’s

COVER STORY /// EDUCATION 8

cultural studies develop joint pro-

introduced a new subject. In addi-

Fortuné, who travels the country on

longest rail tunnel is finished.

grams that are unique in Germany

tion to mathematics and english,

behalf of the “Peace Counts” project,

football championships /

and which consolidate the interna-

happiness is now taught there.

provides the answer. His message is

Poland is expanding its motorways.

understood — even by those in his

fuel gas systems /

audience who are illiterate.

Bilfinger Berger has acquired

tional reputation of the university.

education for everyone

Bilfinger Berger supports the

South Eastern Regional College

renowned alma mater.

(SERC) not far from Belfast is a center for vocational education

48 breakthrough at gotthard /

36 how sweet! marked in Germany by a “sweet”

28 what goes around ...

Rotring Engineering AG.

The first day at school is an occasion custom. To ease their way into the

50 roads of the world münzgasse, Tübingen

test tunnel for bmw / Environmental test center in

and business development in

The dormitory’s inner courtyard

serious side of life, children are given

The great poet Goethe is an ubiq-

Northern Ireland. Bilfinger Berger

presents a kaleidoscope of student

a great cone of paper and cardboard

uitous presence in Germany. Hun-

operates it as part of a public

life, everywhere there are windowed

filled with tasty presents, the “school

dreds of high schools and streets

cubes projecting from the circular

cone.”

carry his name, and a commemo-

Bilfinger Berger becomes European.

rative plaque hangs wherever the

roland koch to become new ceo /

private partnership.

facade, with lights burning late into

16 school has many faces

the night and here and there a party

38 learning by eating

Munich goes into operation.

49 transformation to “se” /

man of letters set foot. In Tübingen,

Former State Premier to succeed

What does the classroom of a child

in progress. Some 360 young people

In the Bavarian town of Münch-

however, this reverential remem-

Herbert Bodner.

who travels with the circus look like?

live in the Tietgenkollegiet through

berg, students at the local secon-

brance is impudently challenged

concession projects / Sale of

Who teaches children when they’re

which groups of visitors wander

dary school are running their own

by a plaque that was hung out the

equity stakes makes room for new

in hospital? Where do children of

as if it were a design museum. It

cafeteria. Their success earned them

window of a student dormitory in

commitments.

Rhine boat skippers go to school?

was not money that called the tune

several awards. Bilfinger Berger is

the eighties and which has now

north sea services / Framework

Sometimes a day at school can be

here, but the aspiration to create

modernizing the school and will

become a permanent feature.

agreements with Statoil.

far from ordinary. A photographic

“the student dormitory of the future.”

also manage the buildings in future.

journey through Germany.

ppp in canada / Women’s hospital under construction in Toronto.

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

CHILDHOOD WITHOUT LEARNING Worldwide there are 69 million children of school

WHO NEEDS AN ENCYCLOPEDIA?

age who are missing their education — mostly be-

In the nine years since it was invented, the online encyclopedia

cause there are no schools and no one to teach

Wikipedia has expanded to include more than 260 language versions.

them. Percentage of children who attend school,

The highest number of articles — three million — are in English. Current-

in selected countries:

ly there are around one million entries in German.

99.9 % 66.1 % 49.5 % 40.2 %

Germany Pakistan Niger Eritrea

Source: United Nations

HIGHER MATHEMATICS “An example of advanced reasoning: The more cheese, the more holes. The more holes, the less cheese. Ipso facto: The more cheese, the less cheese!”

Cited by a professor delivering a mathematics lecture in Aachen

TIMETABLE IN WONDERLAND THE WORLD’S BEST UNIVERSITIES

“And how many hours a day did you do lessons?” said Alice, in a hurry to

Each year the “Times Higher Education” maga-

“nine the next, and so on.” “What a curious plan!” exclaimed Alice. “That’s

zine ranks the 200 best universities in the world.

the reason they’re called lessons,” the Gryphon remarked: “because they

Here are the current top ten:

lessen from day to day.”

1.

change the subject. “Ten hours the first day,” said the Mock Turtle:

from “Alice in Wonderland,” Lewis Carroll

Harvard

2.

California Institute of Technology

3.

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

4.

Stanford University

5.

Princeton

6.

Cambridge

7.

Oxford

8.

University of California, Berkeley

9.

Imperial College London

10.

Yale

CELEBRITY RESEARCH

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photos: istockphoto.de/Luis Pedrosa, photocase.de/flobox, USDA/F. Christian Thompson, John Tenniel, visibleearth.nasa.gov

6 \\ KALEIDOSCOPE

THIRST FOR KNOWLEDGE “Education is what’s left when the last dollar is gone.” Mark Twain

“We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge.” John Naisbitt, futurologist

“The more one already knows, the more one has to learn. As knowing increases, so not knowing increases in equal measure, or rather the knowledge of what one doesn’t know.” Friedrich von Schlegel

UNDER THE NORTHERN LIGHTS

Scientists who discover new species can be very creative when it comes to naming them:

The highest-ranked German university is the

Agra schwarzeneggeri: a ground beetle with strongly developed

University of Göttingen in 43rd place.

limbs discovered in Costa Rica in 2002.

Agathidium bushi, Agathidium cheneyi, Agathidium rumsfeldi: round fungus beetles named after George W. Bush, Dick Cheney and Donald Rumsfeld.

THE JOY OF READING

Campsicnemius charliechaplini: a long-legged fly which moves its hind legs in a manner that reminded the

Bachelor of Bass

Master of Arctis

Unfortunately, school isn’t always as entertaining

researcher of Charlie Chaplin.

A degree course for techno DJs? The Institute of Elec-

The polar night lasts for 113 days, with an average year-round tempera-

in reality as it is portrayed in these popular tales:

Elvisaurus: a dinosaur with

tronic Music at the Royal Academy of Music in Aarhus,

ture of minus 4.5 degrees: You need to dress up warm to study arctic bio-

a crest reminiscent of the

Denmark offers just that. For Wayne Siegel, who

logy and geology at the University Centre in Svalbard, meaning “cold

King of Rock’s hairstyle.

heads the Institute, electronic music is just as high

shores,” in Longyearbyen on the island of Spitsbergen. The 350 or so stu-

Eristalis gatesi:

an art form as music played on the violin, flute or hu-

dents who train to be arctic experts each year are undeterred. Their lab-

a hover fly with eyes

man voice: “We are looking for people who are al-

oratory is at their doorstep, less than 1100 kilometers from the North

like large specta-

ready artists and want to develop their originality.”

Pole. Half the students come from abroad, and lectures are in English.

cles, named

www.diem.dk

www.unis.no

“Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone” by J.K. Rowling

“Matilda” by Roald Dahl

“Nicholas” by René Goscinny

“Sideways Stories from Wayside School” by Louis Sachar

after Bill Gates.

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EDUCATION FOR EVERYONE SOUTH EASTERN REGIONAL COLLEGE (SERC) NOT FAR FROM BELFAST IS A CENTER FOR VOCATIONAL EDUCATION AND BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT IN NORTHERN IRELAND. BILFINGER BERGER OPERATES IT AS PART OF A PUBLIC PRIVATE PARTNERSHIP.

/// Russell Spencer has high hopes of a new life in Northern Ireland. A year ago he and his family moved to Belfast from their homeland of Zimbabwe, which was caught in unprecedented decline. The 21-year-old wears a blue polo shirt with the logo “Johnson’s Coffee.” His job, repairing restaurant coffee machines, takes him all over Northern Ireland and occasionally even to Dublin. He’s earning money. “But I don’t want to be a repairman forever,” he says. Which is why the freckle-faced young man has signed up for an electrical engineering course at South Eastern Regional College (SERC). During the two-year course, he will be studying the secrets of electrons, transistors and electrical resistors — every Thursday, from nine in the morning until nine in the evening. “I’ll stick with it, because I want to get on in life,” he says. Squeezing between a robot arm, conveyor belt and a hopper full of corn, he explains every detail of the sorting machine built by the German robot manufacturer Festo. His eyes light up. “A machine like this costs £200,000. And SERC has got one. Amazing!”

EDUCATION WITH TRADITION SERC is a training center, vocational school and adult education center all rolled into one. Not THE COLLEGE USED TO TRAIN WELDERS TO WORK IN THE DOCKYARDS. TODAY, STUDENTS ARE DISCOVERING THE SECRETS OF ELECTRICAL ENGINEERING.

only do the lecturers teach students from a M AT H I A S R I T TG E R OT T / T E X T / / / R A I N E R K W I OT E K / P H OTO S

wide variety of backgrounds the skills they need to find employment, they also act as consultants and product developers, working on

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BECOMING A HAIRDRESSER: DESPITE LOW PAY IT REMAINS A DREAM JOB, ESPECIALLY FOR YOUNG WOMEN. NAOMI CAMPBELL IS CLIMBING THE EDUCATIONAL LADDER: FROM SECONDARY SCHOOL TO UNIVERSITY ENTRY.

contracts for private industry. And the courses

ing in nearby Belfast: birthplace of the Titanic,

so new, role that SERC is playing in reviving

study here in the evenings, still dressed in the carpentry workshop or the restaurant kitchen.

are tailored to the needs of employers, making

the most modern ocean liner of its time. The

the region’s economy. “We don’t just hand out

overalls they have worn all day at work.

the College a center for vocational education

College trained shipbuilders and welders to

diplomas, we aim to turn out skilled workers

In the morning, the Lisburn campus is

university; they climb steadily up the educa-

and business development in Northern Ireland.

Other young students have their sights set on

meet the demanding needs of the yards. Its

with excellent training.” There is an empha- alive with young people. There are more than

tional ladder one course at a time. That’s what

During the past ten years, some 68,000 em- fees were low enough for even the poor to af-

sis on science, technology, engineering and 5,000 school-leavers with and without quali-

Naomi Campbell, 20, is doing. At SERC she is

ployees have trained here. “These people are ford a higher education. It also offered extra

mathematics; one in three students takes one

fications taking full-time courses in 40 sub-

now studying a level 3 program in Health and

of these courses.

jects. Some of them became acquainted with

Social Care. Sitting in a wheelchair, she moves

SERC while they were still in school, as the Col-

so quickly along the corridors, it’s hard to keep

essential to our economy,” says Ken Webb, Prin-

help in reading, writing and arithmetic for

cipal of SERC and Chief Executive in charge of school-leavers with poor grades.

CLIMBING THE EDUCATIONAL LADDER

lege has partnerships with numerous schools

up with her. She hopes one day to be a social

“We still pursue the same goals as we did in

for decades the country was paralyzed by

In the course of a year, a total of 15,000 adults whose students take extra courses here during

worker at a youth center. At SERC, she has been

1914, when our school was founded,” he ex-

the bloody conflict between Protestants and

like Russell Spencer take their seats in the their vacations. Later on they can complete

elected as the representative for the disabled

plains. In those days, shipbuilding was boom-

Catholics. Ken Webb outlines the new, but not

classrooms, laboratories and workshops. Some their training here, in the car workshop, the on the students’ union.

its 1,200 employees.

Now the ships are being built in Asia, and

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James Currie, 21, has a particularly close relationship with the campus. As a student at SERC he helped with the construction of the building, drawing up work plans and supervising the flow of materials. A big responsibility. Now

CARPENTRY FOR SCHOOLLEAVERS: THE COLLEGE OFFERS A BROAD RANGE OF PROFESSIONAL TRAINING.

he has moved on to the University of Ulster in Belfast and is becoming a building surveyor. Thanks to the two years he spent at SERC, his duration of study will be a year shorter and he will have saved himself around £10,000 in costs associated with attending university.

NETWORKED WITH PRIVATE COMPANIES The focus of the College extends beyond its students to include businesses as well. It is networked with more than 1,000 firms, including heavyweights like Bombardier and Coca Cola. For the aircraft builder, SERC offers training in working with titanium and carbon; while for the beverage manufacturer, the College teaches workers how to operate a modern bottling plant. “We ask what courses companies need. We don’t insist that our courses have a 100-year tradition behind them,” says Michael Malone, Director of Curriculum Services and Campus Director. Small businesses, like the three-man operation run by 39-yearold Harry Connor, are still the mainstay of the region’s economy. The stocky mechanic with tattoos partly visible from beneath his rolled up sleeves points proudly to his invention: a telescopic rod that fits between the steering wheel of a truck and the brake pedal to check the brake lights. “The Extra Foot,” he calls it. “Not a big deal, but they sell well on Ebay,” says Connor. The logo for “The Extra Foot” was developed EXCELLENT ENVIRONMENT FOR LEARNING: CHRISTY DADE, 31, GETS AN AUTOMATIC SORTING MACHINE UP AND RUNNING.

by Andrew Corbett, 42, who teaches art and product design at the College. “Jobs like this keep me on my toes. They stop me from getting rusty from too much theory,” he says, leafing through a sketchbook. The logo cost inventor Harry Connor a fee of £120. “I’ve got more inventions in my head,” he adds with a mischievous smile, “I’ll come back to SERC for the CAD drawings and a logo.”

ANDREW CORBETT, 42, TEACHES PRODUCT DESIGN. ORDERS FROM THE PRIVATE SECTOR GIVE HIS TEACHING A PRACTICAL CONTEXT.

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ROOM TO TALK AND EXCHANGE IDEAS: PLENTY OF LIGHT AND AIR TAKE SOME OF THE STRESS OUT OF STUDYING.

B I LFI NGER B ERGER PROJ ECT I NVESTMENTS

PRIVATE PARTNERS MODERNIZE SCHOOLS AND ROADS AROUND BELFAST

DURING THE DAY, RUSSELL SPENCER REPAIRS COFFEE MACHINES. AT SERC, HE IS TRAINING TO BECOME AN ELECTRICAL ENGINEER.

BILFINGER BERGER GUARANTEES TROUBLE-FREE OPERATION OF THE COLLEGE OVER A PERIOD OF 25 YEARS.

Bilfinger Berger Project Investments (BBPI) has for many years been successfully delivering PPP projects in Northern Ireland, especially around Belfast. BBPI is involved as a private partner in four of the six South Eastern Regional College (SERC) vocational training facilities: in Lisburn,

Ian Cuthbertson enjoys the hustle and bustle always have to be up to date too,” he grins — but

Downpatrick, Newcastle and Ballynahinch, all on the

on campus. “This bright building, with the café

that at least is not part of his field of activity.

south side of the Northern Ireland capital. Ballynahinch,

and the hairdressing salon by the entrance,

Russell Spencer, the young man from Zim-

the latest of the recently modernized and extended build-

is like a mall,” he says, smiling. Once a month

babwe, has plans for the future after training

ings, will open to students in spring 2011. The SERC facili-

he leaves his office in Belfast and visits the

at SERC. “I’m interested in high voltage elec-

ties will be operated by Bilfinger Berger Project Invest-

campus to make sure that all is well. Ian is the

trics,” he says. “A job at a nuclear power

ments for approximately 25 years. There are also plans for

local representative of Bilfinger Berger Project station — that would really be something.”

two more PPP schools in central and eastern Belfast.

Investments. His company operates the College

That, though, would mean going to Eng-

Since 2009, Bilfinger Berger Project Investments has

in Lisburn through a Public Private Partnership

land — there are no nuclear power plants in

also been responsible for a 60 kilometer section of the

(PPP). “For 25 years we will make sure that the

Northern Ireland. But a good education allows

M1/Westlink, which provides access to the southwest of

College is always up to date. That applies to the you to dream beyond national borders.

Belfast. The company had already previously widened

building, as well as the fittings, furniture and

and modernized the highway and will now manage it

equipment.” From the café he looks across to SERC COLLEGE OFFERS A DIVERSE RANGE OF DEVELOP-

for a period of 30 years in return for a fixed fee from the

the hairdressing salon where trainees are busy

MENT OPPORTUNITIES: FOUR CASE STUDIES.

Department for Regional Development. Motorists are not

with combs and hair dryers. “Of course, they

www.magazine.bilfinger.com

required to pay a toll. (si)

//

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Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

MELISSA MN ICH, 9 years old, lives and learns at the maritime children’s home in Mannheim

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FLORIAN LUTZ, 8 years old, attends the hospital school at the Asklepios Klinik Nord in Hamburg

SOMETIMES, A ROUTINE DAY AT SCHOOL CAN BE ANYTHING BUT ROUTINE: A PHOTOGRAPHIC JOURNEY THROUGH GERMANY. K AT H R I N H A R M S / P H OTO S

“WE WAIT FOR THE WEEKENDS”

“I’M THE ONLY STUDENT”

My mother and father travel along the river, because until half past three we do homework. Sometimes after

You can't mess around or copy from someone else at my And only for an hour or two a day. No one can bother me

they’re skippers of a boat on the Rhine. There’s no school that we can go to the gym. Otherwise, we play something

school. Because I’m the only student. The day after my ap-

at the hospital school. At my real school there are a few

on the boat, so from Monday to Friday I live at the home else — and wait for the weekend, when we take the train

pendix operation, a teacher came to visit me at my bedside.

boys who do that. There’s less homework here, too. But I still

for mariner’s children in Mannheim. Luckily, I have six of my

to be with our parents. I can certainly imagine living in one

And the day after that, we started with my lessons. I like

miss my real school and my friends. Most of all I miss gym

eight brothers and sisters at the home. From two o’clock

place, like other children.

that. Mainly we’re repeating stuff, in math for example.

class.

18 \\ LEARNING IN UNUSUAL LOCATIONS

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

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KEVI N JÄGER*, 17 years old, lives in a juvenile detention center in Berlin

ISABELL M A ATZ, 7 years old, comes from a family of circus artists and attends the circus school

“THERE ARE NO DISTRACTIONS HERE”

“WHEN WE PUT UP THE TENT, THERE ARE NO LESSONS”

When I go to school, I only have to cross the yard. A prison

especially in physics. I used to keep dropping out of school.

Our teacher’s name is Eva. When she comes to see us on and when we are putting the tent up, there are no lessons.

officer goes with me. I have classes from 8 until 1 o’clock,

But here I think I could even manage to get my high school

the circus grounds, we first have breakfast together. Then

Eva fits in with our schedule. One day, I would like to be

then it’s back to my cell. The lessons are fun, not like out-

diploma. I’ll need it for my dream job. When I get out, I want

we have school. Math and stuff. Then it’s time for recess,

a circus performer, like my cousin Leslie. She’s 15. Apart

side where I always just switched off. That hardly ever hap-

to work in hotel management.

then we learn German, English, and finally we have lunch

from school and homework, she practices for hours and

pens here in prison. The classes are smaller, and I can

with Eva. There are only three students. But we don’t have hours every day.

understand more. I’m amazed at what I’ve learned already, *The name has been changed

school every day. When we’re traveling from town to town,

20 \\ LEARNING IN UNUSUAL LOCATIONS

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

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ALEXAN DER BEISSWENGER, aged 7, goes to a tiny village school in Unterjoch in the Allgäu region

M ARVI N SCHWEITZER, 9 years old, is the son of a family of showpeople at the “Cannstatter Wasen” fairground in Stuttgart

“MY SCHOOL ONLY HAS ONE ROOM”

“AFTER I’VE DONE MY HOMEWORK, I RIDE THE BUMPER CARS”

I live on a farm. On the way to school I see cows, sheep, hors-

side they make a lot of noise. And when they come in they

I go to school wherever my mother happens to be work- easy. I often start off as an outsider and I always have to

es and farm-raised deer. I like that a lot. We only have one

slam their school bags down on the floor. But sometimes

ing. She has a ball-throwing gallery. We’ve always traveled make new friends. But I never want to give up traveling.

teacher, and only one room. I’m in the first grade, and those

they help us, too. Unfortunately, it ends with the third

around. On the fairground, we’re a community. We all stick

in second grade also learn with us. Of course, sometimes

grade. Then I will have to take the bus to another town

together. As children we get everything for free, like ice when I’ve done my homework, I can ride the bumper cars

it’s a bit loud. When the second graders are on recess out-

where there are lots of classes in a big building.

cream and cotton candy. But in school, it’s not always so every day, as long as I want.

There’s always something new to see. And after lunch,

22 \\ UNIVERSITY OF MANNHEIM

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

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OF MIND AND MONEY THE SUCCESS STORY AT THE PRESTIGIOUS UNIVERSITY OF MANNHEIM IS ALL ABOUT RECONCILING DIFFERENCES. ST E FA N S C H E Y T T / T E X T / / / E R I C VA Z Z O L E R / P H OTO S

AT THE START OF THE WINTER SEMESTER, MARKUS SCHMID ASSUMED HIS POSITION AS PROFESSOR OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION AND CORPORATE GOVERNANCE, A PROGRAM PARTIALLY FUNDED BY BILFINGER BERGER.

ACCEPTED AT SIX GERMAN UNIVERSITIES, SIXTINA WÜNSTEL DECIDED FOR THE ONE IN MANNHEIM: NOW SHE’S TAKING THE POPULAR CULTURE AND BUSINESS PROGRAM.

24 \\ UNIVERSITY OF MANNHEIM

STRICT FUNCTIONALITY IN THE BAROQUE PALACE: A LECTURE IN BUSINESS STUDIES.

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 25

accommodated under the roof is named after

business administration and went on to ob- a highly innovative, practical approach, inter-

Hasso Platter, the founder of SAP and a major

tain a doctorate. After more than 30 years in linking it extensively with business and social

benefactor. There is hardly a hall or lecture

industry, most recently as Chief Financial Of-

sciences — a solution all parties were satisfied

room in the so-called “Studenten-Schloss”

ficer of Bilfinger Berger AG, Schneider has now

with.

(student palace) that is not named after a returned to his alma mater. “The university has sponsor. The University of Mannheim fosters

taken huge steps forward. Not only in terms of

INTERDISCIPLINARY VIEW

and values its close relationship with the

appearance, but in its courses, international

The university’s Business School and School of

business world from which it has attracted

outlook and generally with regard to the

Humanities actually share a common vision,

generous financial and ideational support.

standards it has set for itself,” is Jürgen

which Jürgen Schneider, Dean of the Business

Schneider’s assessment. His school comprises School, sums up succinctly: “The emphasis is

ONE TOP RANKING AFTER ANOTHER

thirty chairs and around 250 academic staff on business at Mannheim, but the relation-

The university belongs to an elite circle. The

whose interests he now represents, especially

Business School, for example, is in a position to

in regard to partner universities that are both in ensuring this focus does not result in nar-

select its 700 entrants a year from almost competitors and networking partners.

ship with associated disciplines is a key factor row-mindedness.”

/// Looking deeply into a newspaper archive

4,000 applicants and has occupied the top

The fact that the Business School has ap-

The newly created Chair of Business Ethics

uncovers an article entitled “The Miracle of

spot in national rankings for many years. To- pointed a manager for this role is unique in

at the School of Humanities is an example

Mannheim.” A few days later at the entrance

gether with the affiliated Mannheim Business

Germany and just one of many examples of

of the opening-up of the disciplines. The pro-

to the university, one gazes over a row of laven-

School, which focuses on executive MBA pro-

how Mannheim perceives itself as a business

fessor holding the chair, humanist Bernward

der meeting with a row of red roses and fol-

grams, it is one of the leading institutions of university. There was a fierce debate about the

Gesang, researches rationing in healthcare

lowed by the gold-painted tops of the cast-iron

its kind in Europe. The School of Humanities, university’s profile several years ago. The com-

services as well as examines the limitations of

fence. A vast square lies behind, encircled by

however, can also point to superior achieve- paratively small School of Humanities feared

growth, alternatives to the capitalist economy

Europe’s second largest baroque palace after

ments, as evidenced by the latest rankings of

for its survival in light of the predominance of and business ethics by companies in the age

Versailles. A bottle of Asti Spumante lies on

the German Center for University Performance

the Business School and fought tooth and nail of climate change. His lectures are mandatory

the pavement, while an empty bottle of Grau-

(CHE), which carries out the most comprehen-

to ensure its continued existence. The rep- for traditional business students, while con-

burgunder stands next to the statue of Karl

sive comparison of German universities.

utable University of Mannheim experienced

versely, the humanists have to engage in basic

its first student revolt and half of the city

business and economics studies.

Ludwig, the electoral prince of the Palatinate

In one of the university buildings, just a

who commissioned the building. Two days

stone’s throw away from the palace, sits Dr. joined in. The chairman of the University

earlier, 13,000 visitors had been celebrating

Jürgen M. Schneider, a slim, tanned man, aged Council at the time mediated in the pitched

the summer and the university palace.

64. The newly appointed Dean of the Business

battle between the Business School and School The bachelor degree course in “Culture and

School clearly has fond memories of his own

of Humanities. He introduced a reform that

Continuing into the foyer of the East Wing with its pillars, glass surfaces and lavish stair-

PLEASANT STRESS IN THE PALACE Business” is a prime example of the reestab-

student days in Mannheim, where he studied resulted in the School of Humanities adopting lished partnership between the disciplines

cases, one encounters two screens on the high walls displaying current lecture information, continuously interrupted by a book recommendation: “Geist und Geld” (Of Mind and Money), from the “Focus on Business and Culture” series, published by a Mannheim professor of history. The university is a success story that reconciles the much invoked opposites. Mind and

“Culture and business are not opposites. Only when the two interact is innovation driven forward and purpose established.” Dr. Jürgen M. Schneider

money, business and culture, even the walls tell the same story. The rectorate hall, named after the Mannheim entrepreneur and patron of the arts Heinrich Vetter, is an area used for alternating art exhibitions, while works by A.R. Penck hang in the senate hall, a loan by the businessman Reinhold Würth. The library

FORMER CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER AT BILFINGER BERGER AND NEW DEAN OF THE BUSINESS SCHOOL: DR. JÜRGEN M. SCHNEIDER.

26 \\ UNIVERSITY OF MANNHEIM

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 27 ABOUT 11,000 YOUNG PEOPLE STUDY AT THE PALACE UNIVERSITY IN THE CENTRE OF MANNHEIM.

and combines core humanities subjects — like aminations with an outstanding grade of 1.4,

21-year-old. She is now in the third term of her

in his trouser pocket and a laser pointer in his

she worked with street children in Peru and

studies, majoring in French and Spanish. She

right, he stands in front of his students who

or economics. Students obtain a joint qualifi- undertook an internship with a corporate

is also working part-time at the School of Hu-

are quietly tapping away on their laptops. The

cation that opens up excellent career opportu-

consultant. She says that she is “one of those

manities and is still committed to development

giant casements are open and the street

nities in areas such as cultural management,

people who likes to achieve.” It is little wonder work. Isn’t that stressful? “Pleasantly stressful!

noise drifts in. He is holding his lecture on

marketing or publishing.

then that all of her six applications to Ger-

languages or history — with business studies

Attending courses in a palace in rooms with

hedge fund strategies and their specific risks

man universities were accepted — and that parquet flooring and high ceilings certainly

in English, which is now commonplace at the

she chose Mannheim. “I see myself as a hu-

makes studying all more enjoyable,” she replies.

Business School in Mannheim. He was named

Sixtina Wünstel has made it into the course. manist, but I think ‘Culture and Business’ also

Prof. Dr. Markus Schmid, 35, is now standing

endowed professor of Business Administra-

After passing her final secondary school ex- opens up opportunities in business,” says the in one such lecture theater. With his left hand

tion and Corporate Governance in the winter

There is great interest in “Culture and Business” with nine applicants for every place.

semester 2010. The chair will be jointly fundIN THE BEGINNING WAS THE WORD: WORKS OF MODERN ART ADORN THE WALLS IN THE LIBRARY.

ed for a five-year period by four Mannheimbased companies, including Bilfinger Berger. “Not least in light of the financial crisis, the topic of corporate governance is extremely relevant from a practical as well as an academic perspective,” explains Schmid, who previously lectured at the University of St. Gallen. The native of Switzerland freely admits that he initially thought that Mannheim was in another part of Germany. But he was naturally well aware of the palace university’s reputation: “I also had an offer from a private university with a significantly higher salary, but Mannheim is the leading university in my field,” he adds. By the time Markus Schmid leaves the palace after his lecture, it is already dark and Mannheim is aglow with lights. He lives nearby, between the railway station and the palace building. Schmid will work long into the night on tomorrow’s lecture. “Just-in-time production,” says the economics professor, making his way home.

//

ODD ON E OUT

PARTN ERSH I PS FOR EDUCATION

THE BRONNBACH SCHOLARSHIP

BILFINGER BERGER OFFERS SUPPORT ACROSS THE SPECTRUM

It is the odd one out among the grants available to young lawyers and economists, and it fits right in

Bilfinger Berger maintains partnerships with various educational institutions. The com-

with the image of Mannheim’s business university. The Bronnbach Scholarship offers students the chance

pany finances university chairs, provides guest lecturers and supports gifted students

to spend a year meeting and talking with artists and those involved with culture at events and presen-

of civil, mechanical and service engineering, facility management and economics.

tations. The aim is to open students’ eyes to creative processes and problem-solving approaches and en-

Bilfinger Berger also helps new business start-ups: Candidates with a business idea that

courage their interest in art and culture. The students can look forward to weekend and evening events

fits the company profile are rewarded with a Bilfinger Berger mentor. Courses for sec-

including lectures, seminars, excursions and projects. The grant is awarded by the Federation of German

ondary school students offer insights into technical career choices including application

Industries (BDI). Bilfinger Berger is among the contributors.

training. The company also partners with more than twenty primary schools in order to

www.bronnbacher-stipendium.de

stimulate an interest in technology among third- and fourth-graders. (si)

28 \\ STUDENT DORMITORY OF THE FUTURE

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 29

THE TIETGENKOLLEGIET BY NIGHT: DANISH WINTERS ARE LONG, THE DAYS SHORT. ALL THE MORE IMPORTANT, THEN, THAT THE STUDENTS FEEL AT HOME IN THEIR OWN FOUR WALLS.

IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO FIND A MORE ATTRACTIVE STUDENT DORMITORY. A VISIT TO THE CIRCULAR TIETGENKOLLEGIET IN COPENHAGEN. B E R N D H A U S E R / T E X T / / / L U N D G A A R D & T R A N B E R G / P H OTO S

30 \\ STUDENT DORMITORY OF THE FUTURE

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 31 WHEN THE KITCHEN RESOUNDS WITH COOKERY, THE STUDENTS IN THEIR ROOMS REMAIN UNDISTURBED THANKS TO THE SOUND-INSULATING FLOORS, WALLS AND DOORS.

BRIGHT ROOMS FOR BRIGHT MINDS. “LUXURY” IS HOW ONE DANISH NEWSPAPER GLOWINGLY DESCRIBED THE DORM ROOMS.

/// The inner courtyard presents a kaleidoscope of student which was financed by the well endowed foundation set up

long time brooding over a plan of the surrounding build- stack of plates and planted it on the plan,” he recalls. The

life, everywhere there are windowed cubes projecting from by a major bank, is no exception. But it was not money that

ings: The location for the dormitory was in northern architects had wanted to create a building to encourage

the circular facade, with lights burning late into the night

Ørestad, a district of the city built on the “new town” prin- communication and community. And what symbolizes to-

called the tune here, but the aspiration to set an interna-

and here and there a party in progress. Some 360 young tional benchmark: “the student dormitory of the future.”

ciple. By no means all of the buildings in this new district getherness better than a circle?

people live here in the Tietgenkollegiet through which

are architectural gems. The Tietgenkollegiet site is sur-

groups of visitors wander as if it were a design museum, INSPIRED BY A STACK OF PLATES

rounded by extended rectangular blocks occupied by of- NO PLACE FOR LONERS

attracted by rave reviews in the Danish press. Journalists The circular design that won the contest for the Tietgenkol-

fices and the university. How could a pioneering design be

On the inside of the ring the architects positioned the com-

have declared it “one of Denmark’s finest buildings,” or, legiet was the brainchild of 51-year-old Peter Thorsen. At

fitted into this configuration? How could the rigid struc-

munal rooms, while the 25- to 33-square-meter individual

simply, “luxury.”

home in cowboy boots, turtleneck and leather jacket, he is

tures be loosened up? “We weren’t at all sure,” Thorsen ad- rooms are on the outside.

a partner with Copenhagen architects Lundgaard & Tran-

mits. The team had been eating cake, their plates lay

Student dormitories in Denmark are frequently built

and run by charitable trusts. And the Tietgenkollegiet, berg. He recalls how during the contest his team spent a

“Scandinavian architecture is always functional,” says

stacked upon the table. “Suddenly one of us grabbed the Thorsen. It is a matter of course that the walls and floors

32 \\ STUDENT DORMITORY OF THE FUTURE

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 33

SPECIALIST BRIDGE BUILDERS WERE CALLED IN TO HELP INSTALL THE PROJECTING KITCHEN CUBES THAT ARE SUPPORTED BY STEEL CABLES.

FROM THE FIRST TRIAL SKETCHES TO THE FINISHED BUILDING: THE DORMITORY IS DIVIDED INTO FIVE SEGMENTS, EACH CONSISTING OF TWELVE LIVING UNITS.

in a student dormitory absorb noise, that designers think

the music room. On Saturdays there is a bar in the party

about where students can dry their wet boots.

room. The building is clad with tombac on the outside, a

The absence of cooking facilities in the rooms is also

brass alloy with a high percentage of copper that looks

part of the plan: “We didn’t design the building for people

good even in “gråvejr” — which is important: “grey weath-

who want to shut themselves away on their own.”

er” is common in Copenhagen. The € 107 million price tag is the only aspect criticized by the Danish public. Isn’t that

A BUILDING IS LIKE A GOOD WINE

a lot to pay for a student dorm? No, says Peter Thorsen, as

The ground floor is a case in point. There, the residents can

the use of durable materials will prove more economical

chat in the computer room, practice circuit training in the as the years go by. “The building is like a good wine,” he gym, do their sewing in the workrooms, play the piano in adds. “It will continue to improve with time.”

//

34 \\ INTERVIEW

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 35 PRINCIPAL ERNST FRITZ-SCHUBERT: “STUDENTS SHOULD LEARN WHAT MAKES THEM HAPPY.”

GETTING AN “A”

IN HAPPINESS

ERNST FRITZ-SCHUBERT, PRINCIPAL OF THE WILLY HELLPACH SCHOOL IN HEIDELBERG, HAS INTRODUCED A NEW SUBJECT. IT’S CALLED “HAPPINESS.” E VA W O L FA N G E L / I N T E RV I E W / / / K AT H R I N H A R M S / P H OTO

Mr. Fritz-Schubert, can anyone actually get a

Do you have any tips on how to give life a

How do you teach your students the skills

What’s good about failure?

bad grade in happiness?

sense of meaning?

they need to be happy?

It could motivate you to make a greater effort. to try and understand minorities, you put to-

Theoretically, yes. But the students are so en-

You have to feel you’re being productive, either

It is a matter of developing formative experi-

Or provide an incentive to take another look at

gether a group of students who then all walk Certainly. The discoveries we make bring a lot

thusiastic that their grades are generally good.

mentally or physically, or both. And then there ences and linking these with positive emo-

what you’re aiming for. Maybe you’re aiming

forward at the same pace. One student has the

Are students less happy than they used to be?

is the ability to immerse yourself in an activity,

tions. The experience of meeting someone, for

too high. Or it could be an opportunity to seek

task of walking slowly behind. He feels acute- of happiness.

Why the need to teach happiness?

to dive right in. Thirdly, we shouldn’t consider

example. Those who stand up straight and

out new strengths.

ly alone. It’s an experience that lingers, with- Do you cry as well?

The opposite of happiness is anxiety and

crises to be catastrophes. We need to see them smile are usually greeted with a smile in re-

Why are feelings so important in your lessons?

out the need for too many words.

That too. Without sadness there would be no

learning goals with experiences. For example, achieving one set for you. Do you laugh a lot in happiness lessons? of joy. Enjoyment is the day-to-day reflection

turn. That releases positive emotions. During

Less than ten percent of the spoken word is

Your students spend a year learning happi-

joy.

on the rise in our society. Pressure from high

So can one learn to be happy?

our lessons we try out things that come from

actually sustainable. Learning takes place less

ness. Is that enough for a lasting happy life?

How did your colleagues react when you sug-

expectations is increasing.

One can learn the right mindset to assess a sit-

the field of theater and movement education.

at a conscious level than through emotions The students learn that positive feelings are a

gested introducing happiness as a subject?

What used to make people happy?

uation and deal with it. For example, I could

So the students discover their strengths in

and physical impressions. Which is why after necessary part of setting life’s goals, and they

Most of them thought it was a good idea. Even

Simple things, such as lying in a field on a

end the day by spending the evening brooding

practical exercises and through feedback

every exercise we ask: what did you think, how

learn how to summon them up. They learn though we Germans generally have a skeptical

sunny day, picking the ripest apple or playing

about what I did wrong. But I can also think from their classmates. Exercises like these al-

did you feel, and how does that fit into your

what is good for them. And that endures.

view of happiness.

soccer with your friends. There are more op-

about what went right, and what I can do bet-

daily life? It’s a form of implicit learning.

One of your course modules is called “enjoy-

Why is that?

portunities today, but they are not always

ter. In other words, shift the focus from the to stand up straight rather than hang your

If the spoken word on its own is of so little im-

ing achievement.”

Our religious background tells us that happi-

what they seem. You can have hundreds of

problem to the solution.

head. Try it, it’s quite easy. “How you stand, is

portance, why does it play such a dominant

Yes, achievement makes you happy if it is

ness is something to “anticipate.” Some wait

friends on Facebook and still be lonely.

Can everyone be happy?

how you feel.”

role in school lessons?

based less on the expectations of others than for eternity. But it’s worth taking your fate in-

What exactly does happiness consist of?

Of course some people find it easier because

Can you find something positive in every

That’s my criticism too. Schools must make a

on a goal you have chosen for yourself. Enjoy- to your own hands.

There are three fundamental components: a

they were born with a sunnier disposition. If

experience, even failure?

greater effort to ensure that they don’t focus

ing achievement means measuring success

feeling of freedom, security — including exis-

you are not born that way, you might have to

If you ask what was good about it and how can

too much on the head; they have to consider and taking pleasure in it. Achieving a goal you

tential security — and a sense of meaning.

work at it a bit harder.

you do it better in the future, then yes.

the heart and the soul as well. We have to link

depression. Studies have shown that they are as challenges. None of that is really so hard.

so improve their self-confidence. It feels better

have set yourself gives far more pleasure than

36 \\ A SWEET WAY TO START SCHOOL

1900

1915

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

1930

1930

1932

// 37

1979

1980

1982

1984

1984

HOW SWEET! AN OLD GERMAN CUSTOM: A BIG BAG OF CANDY ON THE FIRST DAY OF SCHOOL PA U L L A M P E / T E X T

The so-called “school cone” was so big, it was as tall as the little boy himself — and the ribbon it was tied with blocked his view. Stumbling along, he ripped open the 1944

1956

1958

1958

1959

1986

1988

pointed end of the bag and treasure spilled out onto

1993

the pavement: The boy stood up to his ankles “in candies, chocolates, dates, Easter bunnies, figs, oranges, tarts, waffles and marzipan.” The little boy’s name was Erich Kästner, and he grew up to become a famous author. That morning in Dresden in 1906 was his first day at school: an occasion marked in Germany by a “sweet” custom. To ease their way into the serious side of life, in addition to a school bag children are also given a great cone of paper and cardboard filled with tasty presents, the “school cone.” The shape has not changed in the past two hundred years, but the size and contents certainly have. 1967

1968

1972

1973

1974

1994

1998

Long ago, candies and fruit were soon joined by more

1999

practical items, like aprons for the girls or the laptop of its day, a small slate complete with sponge and pencil. Children from poor families found the cone stuffed half full of newspaper, because there wasn’t enough money to fill it with treats. It’s not unusual for today’s children to find a mobile phone or a computer game hidden among the jellybeans, set square and thermos. And of course there always has to be a photo, taken by parents who on this day share the same mixed emotions that the camera so often catches on their 1974

1974

1975

1976

1977

2000

2007

children’s faces: delight, pride, and sometimes a bit of anxiety.

2009

38 \\ STUDENTS RUN THEIR OWN CAFETERIA

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 39

SOMETIMES SCHOOL CAN BE SWEET: PUDDING ROUNDS OFF AN EXCELLENT MEAL.

LEARNING BY EATING IN THE BAVARIAN TOWN OF MÜNCHBERG, STUDENTS AT THE LOCAL SECONDARY SCHOOL ARE RUNNING THEIR OWN CAFETERIA. THEIR SUCCESS HAS EARNED THEM SEVERAL AWARDS. BILFINGER BERGER IS MODERNIZING THE SCHOOL AND IN FUTURE WILL MANAGE THE BUILDING. P H I L I P P M A U S S H A R DT / T E X T / / / H E I N Z H E I S S / P H OTO S

/// “What do we say?” Year 11 student Carolin order,” says a year 12 student, “but I’d still like

What makes the Münchberg model unique is

Strößner, age 17, holds on tight to the plate of

something to eat.” Teacher Elmar Hofmann,

student commitment. This is their cafeteria,

mouth-watering chicken breast. “What do we

watching the scene from inside the kitchen, and they manage it themselves. From the time

say?” she repeats, until the boy in front of her fixes him with a stern look. Of course the hun-

the kitchen was designed five years ago to the

understands and murmurs “thank you.” Final- gry young man gets his schnitzel. Flexibility is

present day, they have had an important say in

ly she lets go of the plate, leaving him to return always part of the service here at the winner everything. A lot of students, if they have a free to his classmates at the table. Lunchtime in

of TV channel Pro 7’s contest to find “Germany’s

period in the morning, drop in to chop onions,

Münchberg. When the bell sounds after the

best cafeteria.”

lay the tables or help out in some other way. And while they may avoid washing up at

fifth lesson of the day, the cafeteria in the secondary school’s recently renovated central WASHING UP IS A POINT OF HONOR

home, at school it is a point of honor. If you want to find Elmar Hofmann, there is

block soon fills up. The relaxed atmosphere —

What’s special, and what has impressed others

punctuated only by the gentle hum of activi-

besides the Pro 7 jury, is not so much the qual- no need to ask at the office or in the staff room.

ty at the counter and the muted whistle of the

ity of the food. It’s good, and often features or-

When he’s not teaching German or philosophy,

steamer — is now replaced by boisterous

ganic produce, but other school and factory

Hofmann spends his free time in the kitchen.

clamor and excited chatter. “I didn’t put in an

cafeterias can also serve up decent meals. Peeling carrots, talking to the students,

40 \\ STUDENTS RUN THEIR OWN CAFETERIA

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 41

QUEUING FOR LUNCH: TEACHER ELMAR HOFMANN BACKS UP THE KITCHEN TEAM.

THEY MAY WELL SHIRK THE WASHING UP AT HOME, BUT AT SCHOOL THE YOUNGSTERS CLEAN CUTLERY AND PLATES WITH ENTHUSIASM.

discussing the next day’s program with manNumber of students at Münchberg secondary school: 872

ager Gabi Ruckdeschel. As a member of the

Average number of meals served per day: 150

senior leadership team, Hofmann sees the

Kitchen team: 3 part-time staff, 2 trainees, 25 students

school kitchen as a way to learn for life, and has

Prices: between 2 and 4 euros

spent years campaigning for such a facility.

Government subsidy: 0 euros

DEVELOPING TALENT For Hofmann and his colleagues, there is much more to it than filling hungry mouths. MAN N ERS MATTER

Apart from all their differing views on teach-

TOP 12 TABLE MANNERS

ing and learning methods and school con-

1. Before you eat, wash your hands!

on: The quality of learning is always most in-

And maybe afterwards as well?

tensive where students can combine the sub-

2. Sit up straight, don’t slouch! Don’t take up more room than you need. 3. The knife is not an axe, the fork is not a spade, the spoon is not a shovel. 4. Remember, you are what you eat. So eat in moderation. 5. Eat soup with a spoon, don’t drink from the bowl. 6. Napkins are not just for decoration, they are there to be used. 7. It is not acceptable to slurp, belch or make other noises while eating!

cepts, there is one thing the educators agree

ject matter with their own experience. Long before the havoc wrought by the results of the Pisa study, education departments and teachers’ seminars were working on concepts to translate the communication of knowledge into creative processes. In simple terms, the more fun you have, the more you want to learn. To the untrained eye, all that happens each day in Münchberg is lunch. But for Elmar Hofmann, there is much more going on here: “The students learn how to take responsibility, be

8. Talking with a full mouth spoils everyone’s appetite.

creative, express themselves, organize a busi-

9. We do not shout across the room, we speak quietly.

ness, from ordering via the Internet to paying

10. If you can make a mess, you can clear it up. 11. “Please” and “thank you” sound so much nicer than grunting.

12. The π KANT team are students, not servants. The π KANT team members hope you enjoy your meal.

the monthly accounts.” Today being Monday, there are three dishes on the menu: breast of chicken with red and green peppers, fillet of fish or a hamburger. All homemade, of course, and at an astonishingly low price of between two and four euros for this quality. And that includes salad from the self-service buffet as well as a free drink. The school receives no subsidies from the public purse to run the cafeteria.

42 \\ STUDENTS RUN THEIR OWN CAFETERIA

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 43

A GOOD MEAL STARTS WITH A LOVINGLY LAID TABLE: HERE A STUDENT FOLDS NAPKINS.

PROJECT MANAGER MARTIN KÜPPERS MAKES SURE THE RENOVATION WORK IS DONE AS QUIETLY AS POSSIBLE, PARTICULARLY WHEN THE “EXAMINATION IN PROGRESS” SIGN IS HUNG OUT.

PPP I N TH E EDUCATION SECTOR

STRONG DEMAND FOR MODERN SCHOOLS Many district administrations are facing a Herculean task: There is hardly a school in Germany that isn’t in dire need of modernization. Insulation, heating and sanitation are often forty years old or more and the classroom technology, cafeterias and open spaces are poorly designed and out of date — if they exist at all. In the Hof district of rural Bavaria, four schools are currently being expanded and modernized in parallel in a public private partnership (PPP). The Münchberg secondary school is one of them (see our report opposite). Construction work at the schools will be completed in less than three years — if it had not been for PPP, the project would have taken twelve years. The district administration will one of four schools in the Hof district that are

spread the cost of the modernization over a period of 22 years, while

The students have decorated the tables with

her gaze. Not one fails to run around and pick

Bilfinger Berger operates the school buildings. The overall package

an autumn theme. A notice near the entrance

up the cloth. Three girls who have quickly eat- cafeteria, someone to whom the students can currently being modernized and will subse-

will cost the district around ten percent less than a conventional

listing the “top twelve table manners” reminds

en their own meals now stand by the industri- from time to time let off steam about the quently be operated (PPP) by Bilfinger Berger.

modernization project, because in public private partnerships

diners of the accepted standards of central Eu-

al dishwasher, cleaning plates and cutlery in

buildings are optimized over their entire life cycle.

ropean behavior: “The knife is not an axe, the

ordered harmony. Two rooms away, three year

Just a few weeks ago the kitchen team scarcely have afforded the cost of the building

In Halle an der Saale, too, there are a lot of schools in need of ren-

fork is not a spade, the spoon is not a shovel.”

12 students sit in the office, calculating the

moved into their freshly renovated premises. work totaling some €45 million. It was the

ovation. Since 2008 the city has increasingly relied on partnerships

Over 150 meals are served over the counter

day’s accounts on a computer.

The workmen modernizing the entire school

with Bilfinger Berger. The company modernized five schools in 2008,

here every day, generally to the customers’

four more in 2009, and now the municipality has commissioned a

complete satisfaction. The students have

primary school and an after-school center. In every case Bilfinger Berger also operates the buildings.

just a good housekeeper. Gabi is the soul of the

teachers or pour out a lovesick heart.

The district administration on its own could

long-term contracts for a PPP project with Bil-

complex have now moved on to the next stage finger Berger that made the redevelopment of the job. Carrying out the work while the

named their canteen “Pi-Kant” — eating is al-

SCHOOL DOESN’T STOP FOR REDEVELOPMENT

so a spur to education. When the rush begins

“If you were to offer the whole thing as a sub-

organization on all sides. When examinations kitchen surfaces are spick and span. Gabi are due the workmen switch to quieter jobs, Ruckdeschel just has time to catch her breath

school is still operational requires a talent for

possible. Lunch is over now, and the stainless steel

PPP continues to make inroads in the education sector. Around

shortly after 1:00 pm, every detail is organized:

ject on the curriculum, it would fall flat,” Elmar

15 percent of all school construction measures in Germany are be-

Carolin positions herself by the exit, her task is

Hofmann is quite sure. But this way it works, and deliveries of materials are scheduled so as before her day continues: Year 5 students have

ing carried out through public private partnerships. (si)

to cast an “evil eye.” Anyone who leaves the

because it is voluntary and because the cafe-

table without wiping it clean is transfixed by

teria manager Gabi Ruckdeschel is more than

not to cause any disturbance. The Münchberg secondary school is just

signed up for a cooking course. Learning for life — more than just words in Münchberg. //

44 \\ STORYTELLER OF THE IVORY COAST

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

// 45

/// The man on stage opens his eyes wide and yells: “Bang! Bang! called “griots.” Sometimes, the annals of the tribes stretch back Bang!” He shrinks away as if seeking cover from the bullets and to the old kings of the Tuareg in the Sahara. But there are few of with a quivering voice imitates the cries of children hiding be- these traditional “griots” left. Their art lives on in modern forms. hind a wall: “Come here, Madame Kambou, come here to us!” Rappers, storytellers and entertainers on television and at chilThen the man draws himself up and pauses for a moment before

dren’s birthday parties all regard themselves as “maîtres du mot,”

continuing in a deep voice filled with emotion: “But Madame

masters of the spoken word. Africa is a continent with a long oral

Kambou went out onto the street despite the bullets to find a tradition. Rural schoolchildren have little in the way of books. sack of rice for her orphan children.”

They learn by listening and repeating. From Abidjan, the biggest

In a dusty square, children are crouching in front of the stage, city in Ivory Coast, to remote townships, there are people on every staring up at the storyteller. The elders in their colorful robes and

corner talking into their mobile phones. But woe betide anyone

embroidered kepis sit rigidly in a row of plastic chairs. Behind waiting for an answer to an e-mail: A forlorn hope even where them stands a crowd, so many that the glow of the spotlights fails Internet access prevails. to illuminate them all. “Are the children supposed to starve, I ask you?” the storyteller

PEACE ROADSHOW

demands with such vehemence that even the elders flinch.

“We take advantage of this oral tradition,” explains Tilman Wörtz,

“Should they starve?” he repeats. “No!” the children scream.

37, a journalist and project leader with the “Peace Counts” initia-

“Madame Kambou looks after 56 orphans,” the storyteller low-

tive that supports the peace process in areas of conflict world-

ers his voice a little. “56” He pauses for effect. “That’s more than

wide. Wörtz began by training a dozen Ivorian journalists, re-

five football teams!” The children laugh, the elders too. Madame

searching and photographing stories with them which show how

Kambou’s story is followed by one about a schoolmaster who me-

people all over the country are working towards peace, regard-

diates between nomadic herdsmen and farmers when the no- less of the ethnic group or religion to which they belong. The remads’ cows have trampled the farmers’ fields. Every story tells of

ports were then published in the country’s newspapers. To reach

people who set an example of how to resolve conflicts by peace-

people in rural areas, the German-Ivorian team headed by Tilman

ful means. The heroes of the stories intercede between enemies,

Wörtz developed the idea of a road show built around the story-

teach former fighters how to earn a peaceful living, defend the

teller Fortuné.

rights of political prisoners. They are committed civilians who wield neither power nor weapons — just the same as those who

IVORY COAST HAS BEEN TORN APART BY CIVIL WAR. HOW CAN THE COUNTRY BE BROUGHT BACK TOGETHER? STORYTELLER FORTUNÉ, WHO TRAVELS THE COUNTRY ON BEHALF OF THE “PEACE COUNTS” PROJECT, PROVIDES THE ANSWER. HIS MESSAGE IS UNDERSTOOD — EVEN BY THOSE IN HIS AUDIENCE WHO ARE ILLITERATE.

listen spellbound as the stories unfold. And yet it is these people the country is depending on for its future. Four years after the bloody civil war ended, Ivory Coast is still a country in tatters. The first presidential elections offer a

“Et les nouvelles?” — “What’s the news?” It is the duty of travelers in rural areas to be the bearers of information.

chance for a new beginning — provided they do not trigger a A N D R E A S L E N Z / T E X T / / / M A C L I N E H I E N / P H OTO S

fresh round of violence in this, the world’s fifth poorest country, in which barely half the population can read and write.

CONTINENT OF ORAL TRADITION Newspapers are a medium reserved for an urban elite. The rural

The storyteller, presenter, radio technician, assistants, musicians,

population has no television. When a traveler appears, the first

dancers and all their equipment are crammed into a truck, a 4x4

question the head of the family asks is, “Et les nouvelles?” —

and two minibuses. The convoy sets off in the north, in Korhogo,

“What’s the news?” It is the duty of travelers in rural areas to be winding its way towards Bouaké in the center of Ivory Coast, then the bearers of information, and the relating of it has a long tra-

westward on a journey totaling 2,800 kilometers. The shows are

dition in West Africa: The bards who for hundreds of years have broadcast on the radio, in French on the national channel RTI and passed down an oral history from generation to generation are

in the tribal languages on local stations. This is the first time the

46 \\ STORYTELLER OF THE IVORY COAST

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

LOUDSPEAKERS FILL THE PLACE DE LA REPUBLIQUE WITH A BLARE OF MUSIC.

// 47

A THOUSAND, MAYBE TWO THOUSAND PEOPLE BUNCH TOGETHER IN A SEMICIRCLE AROUND THE STAGE.

government channel RTI has cooperated with rebel stations in

bunched together in a semicircle around the stage, hungry for

The farmers should let the nomads leave their cattle in the fields

laughed. “A story without a moral? Every story needs a moral. At

the north. In his day job, the “Peace Counts” storyteller is an ac-

new experiences that are a rarity in their media-free environ-

that are lying fallow! Then everyone’s a winner. Then there is no

least it does in Africa!” Nor would he give up the jabbing finger

tor in the soap opera “Quoi de neuf?” (“What’s new?”), a charac- ment. “You know, I like to tell a joke,” Fortuné begins with the one

need to keep killing one another. Is that not right?” — “Yeessss!”

and the shouting. “You Europeans are prudes! For Africans these

the children cry.

are not aggressive gestures. People want this kind of unambigu-

ter everyone knows in Ivory Coast. His appearances in the villages

about the farmer harvesting manioc who cuts off his pride and

are preceded by youths touring the streets with megaphones, joy. “But tonight I want to talk to you about serious things,” he

ous clarity!”

drumming up an audience: “This evening, Mesdames et

continues, assured now of their attention. “In these parliaments

EVERY STORY NEEDS A MORAL

Messieurs, we bring you a sensation — but don’t tell anyone:

— you know what happened? — political opponents were ha-

Besides his voice, Fortuné’s most important tool is the finger he

ly played out in the villages, they were broadcast nationwide on

At seven o’clock the famous actor Fortuné is appearing in the

rassed, minorities were excluded, people who have lived in Ivory

points. “You too can be like Madame Kambou!” he urges his au-

the radio and achieved an impact that exceeded all expectations.

Place de la République!“

Coast for a long time, Senufo, Yacouba, We.” Fortuné doesn’t talk

dience, “Whatever you do for a living: everyone can help! Yes, you!

like a university professor. He doesn’t use the abstract turns of

And you, and you!” His pointing finger picks out individuals

IN THE LANGUAGE OF THE PEOPLE

Success proved Fortuné right. The peace shows were not on-

phrase beloved of academic development aid workers, you

among the crowd. A European audience might find it too em-

Of course, there is no one in the square at seven o’clock. First loud- won’t hear him speak of “synergies between nomads and farm-

phatic. “To start with I was concerned that Fortuné was being too

In 2009 Peace Counts was presented with the Peter Becker Award

ers”. Instead, he pretends to be a cow that drops a dung pat in a

dramatic, moralizing too much instead of passing on informa-

by the University of Marburg for its unconventional educational

hour or so, a thousand, maybe two thousand people will have field and fertilizes it: “Nomads and farmers need one another!

tion,” project leader Tilman Wörtz admits. But Fortuné just

approach.

speakers fill the neighborhood with a blare of music. After an

48 \\ NEWS

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

SWITZERLAND CELEBRATES THE GOTTHARD BREAKTHROUGH.

// 49

B R EAKTH ROUGH AT TH E GOTTHAR D

B I LFI NGER B ERGER GOES EU ROPEAN

SHAR ES SOLD I N CONC ESSION PROJ ECTS

CENTERPIECE OF THE WORLD’S LONGEST RAIL TUNNEL

TRANSFORMATION TO “SE”

SCOPE FOR NEW COMMITMENTS

Since October 2010 Bilfinger Berger is no

Bilfinger Berger Project Investments is taking on a partner in four of its 29 concession

On October 15, 2010 Bilfinger Berger celebrat-

longer just a German company by name,

projects. HSBC Infrastructure will acquire half of the stakes held by Bilfinger Berger in

ed the breakthrough at the Gotthard Base

but a European one: The company now

the Edmonton Ringroad and Kicking Horse Canyon highways in Canada and in the Kent

Tunnel which, at 57 kilometers, is the world’s

trades as an SE (Societas Europaea). The

Schools project in England, and will also take an indirect 41.6 percent interest in the M80

longest rail tunnel. Together with its partners

transformation reflects Bilfinger Ber-

motorway project in Scotland. The price amounts to € 72 million, above the net present

from Switzerland and Italy, the company has

ger’s strong growth in Europe and serves

value of the four projects as reported by Bilfinger Berger. The sale will provide the com-

been working on the centerpiece of the new

as an outward indication of the compa-

pany with financial scope for new commitments.

Alpine transit route since 2002. The break-

ny’s European sense of identity. The Su-

through at the southern end met with huge

pervisory Board of Bilfinger Berger SE is

public response. The Gotthard Base Tunnel is

comprised of twelve members. Dr. h. c.

one of Europe’s most ambitious transport

Bernhard Walter is the Chairman.

projects. Trains are due to start running through the tunnel in 2017. FROM POLITICS TO BUSI N ESS

ROLAND KOCH TO BECOME CHIEF EXECUTIVE

EU ROPEAN FOOTBALL C HAMPIONSH I P 2012

POLAND DEVELOPS MOTORWAY NETWORK

Roland Koch, the former Premier of the

A consortium headed by Bilfinger Berger Civil has received an or-

amounting to € 135 million. The new road is due to enter service

State of Hesse, is to succeed Herbert

der to build a 12.6 kilometer section of the new motorway ring

before the European Football Championship begins in June 2012.

Bodner as Chairman of the Executive

around Warsaw. The section will connect the international airport

Bilfinger Berger is also building a nine-kilometer long southern

Board of Bilfinger Berger SE. Koch joins

serving the Polish capital with the A2 highway. The project is

section of the Danzig motorway ring as well as an 11-kilometer

the Board on March 1, 2011 and will take

valued at a total of € 200 million, with Bilfinger Berger’s share

stretch of highway near Bialystok.

over the chairmanship with effect from July 1 when Herbert Bodner retires after fourteen years as a Board member,

FU EL TREATMENT PLANTS

CLIMATIC WIND TUNNEL FOR RAIL TEC ARSENAL IN VIENNA.

ACQUISITION OF ROTRING ENGINEERING

twelve of them as Chairman. Roland Koch expressed his pleasure at his future task, saying “Bilfinger Berger is a

KICKING HORSE CANYON HIGHWAY, CANADA.

premium address in the German busi-

Bilfinger Berger Power Services is to

ness world and one of the most dynam-

acquire Rotring Engineering AG, a

ic companies I know.”

PPP I N CANADA

NORTH SEA SERVIC E

WOMEN’S HOSPITAL IN TORONTO

FRAMEWORK AGREEMENTS WITH STATOIL

vices include the design, delivery and

Bilfinger Berger Project Investments is to

Bilfinger Berger Industrial Services has

installation of complete systems for

design, finance, build and operate the

signed new framework agreements

the treatment of liquid and gaseous

new Women’s College Hospital in Toron-

with Norwegian energy group Statoil

specialist in fuel treatment systems for the power generation industry worldwide. Rotring Engineering’s ser-

fuels. The company has an annual out-

BMW TEST TU N N EL

to. The project foresees an investment vo-

valued at more than € 250 million. The

put volume of around € 30 million and

TURNKEY SNOWSTORMS

lume of € 340 million with Bilfinger Ber-

agreements cover the maintenance of

ger making an equity commitment of € 27

offshore production platforms and

generated an output volume of more

BMW’s Energy and Environmental Test Center (EVZ) in Munich has gone into operation.

million. The concession is being awarded

processing vessels in the North Sea as

than € 1 billion in the Power Services

The new center, the largest of its kind in the world, enables BMW to simulate mountain

for a 30-year period. Once completed, the

well as at onshore locations in Norway

business segment last year. Activities

driving, high speeds and the effects of weather conditions and climate zones. Bilfinger

clinic sponsored by the Health Ministry of

and Denmark. The contracts run for four

in this segment are the most profit-

Berger Industrial Services constructed the test bed on a turnkey basis. The company had

Ontario will have the capacity to treat

years, with options to extend for a fur -

able in the Group.

previously built the biggest climatic wind tunnel for rail vehicles in Vienna.

around 400,000 female patients per year.

ther four-year period.

is highly profitable. Bilfinger Berger

ROLAND KOCH TO TAKE THE HELM.

50 \\ ROADS OF THE WORLD

“GOETHE LIVED HERE” The great poet Goethe is an ubiquitous presence in Germany. Hundreds of high schools and streets carry his name, and a commemorative plaque hangs wherever the man of letters set foot. This is the case at Münzgasse 15 in Tübingen, where a sign reads: “Goethe lived here” — namely for 14 days, while on his way to Italy, having stopped here for a visit with Johann Friedrich Cotta, the famous publisher of German classic literature. In 1986, the groups of tourists who regularly make a pilgrimage to Cotta’s house inspired the students in the adjacent dormitory to hang an equally edifying sign from one of the windows: “Goethe puked here.” A provocation that may just contain a kernel of truth: It is reported that Goethe countered his displeasure over Tübingen with long evenings in the city’s various taverns. The spoof of the commemorative plaque is now better known than the original, and for the city’s tour guides it often serves as the final highlight of their excursions. Through the years, however, the old plywood sign has suffered the perils of weather and time, so now one of the initiators would like to replace it — with one made of material more befitting a commemorative plaque: Carrara marble. BERN D HAUSER / TEXT /// H E I N Z H E I S S / P H OTO

Bilfinger Berger Magazine // 01 2011

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