ZEW Purchases Own Building

In the year of the institute's 25th anniversary, the Centre for European Economic Research (ZEW) purchased its own building in Mannheim. On October 5, 2016, ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach and Thomas Kohl, Director of Business and Administration, officially signed the purchase agreement.

Since its foundation in 1991, ZEW has been located in the city centre of Mannheim, in close proximity to the University of Mannheim. Before moving to its current location, ZEW was located directly next to the central station. In 1996, after construction was completed, ZEW moved into the characteristic atrium building in L7,1, remaining in close proximity to the central station.

"The purchase of the ZEW building is a milestone for the institute. The location offers significant advantages for research and practice, both today and in the future. The Rhine-Neckar Metropolitan Region and Mannheim are particularly well-suited for an international research institute such as ZEW thanks to the excellent infrastructure, and the close proximity to the Frankfurt International Airport as well as to the universities of Mannheim, Heidelberg and Karlsruhe," emphasise ZEW President Professor Achim Wambach and Thomas Kohl, Director of Business and Administration.

Since its foundation in 1991, ZEW has established itself on an international level and is now one of Europe's leading economic research institutes. In 2015, the German Research Foundation (DFG) concluded that in terms of the funding received as part of the seventh EU Framework Programme (FP7), ZEW is the most successful of all German economic research institutes. This has been achieved despite strong international competition.

The ZEW success story will be fittingly celebrated within the framework of the festivities held on December 8, 2016, in the presence of high-ranking guests from the fields of science, economics, politics, and society. The festivities will provide an opportunity to look back on pivotal moments in ZEW's development, and to discuss the direction which ZEW's work shall take in the coming 25 years.