Library, Vietnamese-German University
A 21st Century Campus Library
The Vietnamese-German University’s library is a cornerstone of student life on campus. Its design reflects the changing role of the campus library within universities—more than just a repository for books and reference materials, it includes spaces for students to study, gather, exhibit their work, attend lectures, and work collaboratively. A modularized bris soleil provides indirect natural light to these student-focused spaces, which wrap the building, while the book stacks are enclosed in a separate, climatically sealed, transparent volume at the center of the library, separated from the exterior elements by the spatial and thermal buffer of the student spaces.
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Client: Vietnamese-German University
Location: Binh Duong Province, Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam
Year: 2015 - 2022
Status: Built
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Lead Architect: Machado Silvetti
Local Architect/Urban Designer: Hoang Giang Construction Consultant Co., LTD (HGCC)
Landscape Architect: Grant Associates
Local Landscape Architect: MCA Landscape Design Corporation
Local Architect/Urban Designer: TwoG Architecture
Engineering (Structure, MEP, Lighting, Acoustics, Civil): ARUP North America, ARUP Vietnam
LOCAL MEP/FP/C/S Consultant: National General Construction Consulting Joint Stock Company (NAGECCO)
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The Vietnamese-German University
The Vietnamese-German University (VGU) is the result of a unique collaboration between the World Bank, the Vietnam Ministry of Education and Training and the German Hessen State Ministry of Science and Art. The objective of this effort was twofold:
Develop an internationally accredited higher education program for research and professional advancement for Vietnamese students
Build a new campus for the University that will serve as a model for future campuses in Vietnam.
The University offers advanced undergraduate and post-graduate programs, capitalizing on the expertise of German academic partners and the demands of Vietnam’s unique science, technology and socio-economic challenges.
The 50.5 ha new campus includes laboratories, classrooms, food-courts, sports halls, administrative spaces, and dormitories for 12,000 students—3,519,800 SF of built area. Phase 1 of the project, completed in 2021, provides campus spaces to support 5,000 students—1,453,130 SF of built area—with the construction of subsequent phases contingent on future enrollment.
Library/Entry Court/ Ceremony Hall
The library is part of a trio of important public buildings, including the Ceremony Hall and Entry court. These buildings create a monumental view for the main entry, producing a memorable and defining image for the VGU campus. The importance of the arrangement of these three buildings is that they are understood as a connected group, but represent three different entities: an entry court, library, and ceremony hall.
Public Programming and the Continuous Ground Floor
Following the continuous ground-floor concept central to the broader campus design, the body of the library is lifted off the ground and is connected to neighboring buildings by a web-like canopy. On the ground floor, pavilion-like rooms provide more public-facing programming—exhibition space, information center and university bookstore, cafe, health center and delivery services. A central grand stair and adjacent elevators provide entry to the main floor of the library.
Interiors
The main two levels of the library are bisected by three levels of compressed book stacks. Across from the grand stair primary entrance, the main information desk and back of house operations provide welcoming, orientation and information services for students as the first arrive. Additional programmed areas provide for specialty books and journals, computer pool, group and private study rooms, two large reading rooms, offices and a multipurpose reading theatre.
Façade Strategy
The façade is made up of a modularized bris soleil. By day, the bris soleil provides indirect natural daylight to the interiors and by night acts as a glowing lantern that illuminates the internal functions of its occupants.
“VGU Library is the core hub of our University. It is a state-of-the-art model for Vietnam with a wide range of study areas, designed to suit the multi-purpose requirements and learning styles of our students.”
— Vietnamese-German University
