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We are getting closer to implementing an important project - the construction of an IT Tower on the campus of Lublin University of Technology. The new facility will educate IT specialists, but it will also be the seat of the Interdepartmental Center for Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence. The University authorities announced the details of the new investment during a press briefing held on October 9, 2023.

Prof. Zbigniew Pater, rector of Lublin University of Technology, began his speech by reminding that the planned location of the IT Tower is consistent with the original, modernist investment assumptions for the construction of the facilities of the Higher School of Engineering in Lublin: – This concept was created around 1970. The author of the study was Prof. Ludwik Uzarowicz from Warsaw University of Technology, while the design was made by "Miastoprojekt" from Lublin, under the supervision of architects Jerzy Androsiuk, Stanisław Fijałkowski as well as Rita and Tadeusz Nowakowski. Unfortunately, in the early 1980s, due to the crisis, further expansion of Lublin University of Technology was stopped. Today we go back to the roots…

According to the rector, the IT Tower is an important place, but the most important thing is what will be inside the building: – It will include modern, properly equipped laboratories, but above all, people who will implement new challenges, new projects and solutions, which will then be implemented in the city and the region.

Artur Soboń, Secretary of State at the Ministry of Finance, referred to the development strategy of Lublin, the region, and the entire country: – We are an economy that attracts technologically advanced projects and competes on the level of productivity and innovation. The Polish economy is successful, but today we still need to develop our potential. Undoubtedly, the IT Tower, thanks to the opportunity to educate IT specialists, will be something that will help with this.

The minister, giving the rector a symbolic check for the construction of the IT Tower, said: – I am convinced that today the PLN 100 million for Lublin University of Technology is not only an excellent investment in the development of the University itself, but also a great investment in the future of Lublin to become the center of artificial intelligence in Poland.

Michał Mulawa, Vice-Marshal of the Lublin Voivodeship, confirmed: - This is a clear signal that Lublin and the Lublin region is to become the capital of artificial intelligence and staff training in the IT sector. The IT Tower will have highly specialized staff that will shift the region's economy towards smart specializations.

Lech Sprawka, Voivode of Lublin, mentioned how important technical education is: – We are currently cooperating to create an educational valley in primary and secondary schools in six subjects: physics, chemistry, biology, geography, mathematics and computer science. Graduates of such schools are an excellent base to use in the IT Tower.

The idea behind the creation of the Interdepartmental Center for Cybersecurity and Artificial Intelligence was, among others, providing consulting services to the industry, as discussed by Prof. Dariusz Czerwiński, head of the Department of Applied Computer Science: – The Center will play a service role in the area of maintaining digital security, starting from the analysis of the current security measures of a given entity, through the identification of possible cyber threats, to the development of a dedicated corrective action plan and its implementation. We are currently using our experience in these areas as part of the Lublin Digital Union and the Regional Center for Digital Medicine.

Future degree holders in computer science will be educated in the new building. – This field of study has been operating at the university for 23 years. Every year, 300 new IT specialists leave our walls. However, the current and future demand for IT specialists exceeds our quantitative capabilities. We are not able to prepare so many graduates who would certainly find employment in companies operating in the Lublin Voivodeship - explained Prof. Paweł Węgierek, Dean of the Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science. He added: - Thanks to the investment, we will be able to educate at least 20% more IT students each year.

The university plans to launch the following fields of study: technical informatics and cybersecurity. Students of these fields would also find a place to study in the new facility.

The new building will be located in a strip along Nadbystrzycka Street and the main compositional axis of the campus. Currently there is a parking lot there. The architectural concept was developed by architects of Lublin University of Technology: Prof. Bartłomiej Kwiatkowski and Karol Krupa, MSc. Arch. The work took almost 2 years.

The building will be nearly 30 m high and will consist of 10 floors: 8 above-ground and 2 underground. Its total space will be 12,000 m², and the volume 39,000 m³. Inside, there are auditoriums, seminar rooms, 3 lecture halls for 120-300 people, as well as space for the activities of scientific clubs and individual work, reading rooms, and a relaxation area. The building will also house 30 general and specialized laboratories. Administrative and office space as well as technical facilities are also planned.

– The facility will be equipped with a computerized organizational support system containing information on room availability. All rooms will be accessible to people with limited mobility, as well as to people with visual and hearing impairments. Additionally, in public spaces there will be the so-called "relaxation alleys" - said the co-author of the architectural concept of the building, Prof. Bartłomiej Kwiatkowski.

The IT Tower will be built of ecological materials. The concept includes, among others, green terraces and the use of the so-called "gray water". Solutions will also be used to prevent birds from colliding with large facade glazing.

As Prof. Kwiatkowski emphasized, the building will be adapted to climate changes: - We will install facades that do not heat up, automatic blinds on the glass facades and photovoltaic installations with an energy storage system.

Finally, the Rector thanked all the people who made the idea of building the IT Tower a reality: – My words of thanks go to Prime Minister Mateusz Morawiecki, who stood at the end of this decision-making process. It was the Prime Minister who chose our project from dozens or hundreds of different proposals. This is also thanks to our emissaries: Minister Artur Soboń, Minister Przemysław Czarnek, Marshal Michał Mulawa and Voivode Lech Sprawka. I would also like to thank our employees who have been preparing this project for almost 2 years.