Cooperation between the Škoda Auto University and the Czech Technical University in Prague (ČVUT)
Cooperation between the Faculty of Architecture of CTU, Škoda Auto University, Škoda Auto and the Škoda Auto Foundation was concluded on the basis of a memorandum, the aim of which is to connect student communities and develop the university environment.
In the memorandum of mutual cooperation, the parties undertake to work together on projects that will lead to these goals. For this, it will create a platform for communication and coordination of its activities. The task of the Parties is to involve students in this cooperation and to strive for the cultivation of the university environment. The Škoda Auto Foundation supports the development of education and youth in selected regions and is aware of the importance of investing in these areas. Overall, it can be said that the Memorandum aims to support the development of education and youth and improve student life at universities.
"In addition to its educational and scientific activities, Škoda Auto University also contributes to the attractiveness of the city of Mladá Boleslav. Therefore, the establishment of cooperation with the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague and the organisation of the City of Electromobility exhibition in its framework aligns with Škoda Auto University's mission. The agreed cooperation between the students of our universities is of great educational significance as well. For a long time, Škoda Auto University has focused on the development of professionally oriented study programmes in business economics, including programmes specialising in financial management, logistics and marketing. Our graduates are prepared to work in the corporate world, often managing technical projects or collaborating with experts in various technical disciplines to prepare and implement them. We are convinced that the professional focus of the students from both universities will benefit from combining the creativity of future architects with the sound reasoning of future planners, controllers or logisticians gained through collaborating on joint student projects. Moreover, I believe the students will be interested in participating in such activities."
doc. Ing. Pavel Mertlík, CSc.
Rector, Skoda Auto University
- Pavel Mertlík (1961) has served as Rector of Škoda Auto University since February 2015. He was Rector of the Banking Institute of the College from 2012 to 2015, and before that, he was the Chief Economist of Raiffeisenbank for 11 years. From 1998 to 2001, he was Deputy Prime Minister for Economic Policy and Minister of Finances (1999-2001). Prior to his appointment as a member of the Government, he worked at the Czech National Bank, the Faculty of Social Sciences of Charles University, the Prognostic Institute of the Czech Republic, and the University of Economics in Prague. He has published many scientific studies in the Czech Republic and abroad, primarily focusing on price theories and empirical analyses of the transformation of centrally planned economies. From 2014 to 2017, he was an adviser to the Prime Minister on the economy. He served as President of the Czech Economic Society (CSE) from 2004 to 2006. He has undertaken long-term study stays at Staffordshire University in Stoke on Trent (UK) and at the Institut für Arbeit und Technik in Gelsenkirchen (Wissenschaftszentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany). He is married and shares a passion for cycling and skiing with his wife, Dana.
"I have a great hope that our cooperation will lead to a practical interconnection of the disciplines that belong together – architecture and economics – in accordance with the principles of sustainable development. A holistic approach to design considers many factors such as social and cultural context, environmental impact and financial sustainability. In this collaboration, students can enhance each other's knowledge as well as skills and prepare themselves for collaboration in an architectural practice environment."
doc. Ing. arch. Dalibor Hlaváček, Ph.D.
- Is authorized architect and teacher, from 2022 Dean of the Faculty
of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague. In 2001–2002 he undertook an
internship at Renzo Piano’s
studio in Genoa, Italy, and since 2008 he has been running his own
architectural studio. He led a team of CTU students who participated in the
international university competition Solar Decathlon with the solar house AIR
House. He teaches studio at FA CTU, he is also the supervisor and lecturer of
the Ecology I course and since 2018 he has been the head of the Department of
Architectural Design II. Between 2015 and 2022 he had been a member of the
council of the European Association for Architectural Education (EAAE), which
is dedicated to improving the quality of architectural education in Europe.
Page: https://www.fa.cvut.cz/en/faculty/people/309-dalibor-hlavacek
"The cooperation of the Škoda Auto Foundation with the Škoda Auto University and the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University is a new important platform for us, through which we want to bring a new wind to the debate about public space in Mladá Boleslav. The ideas of young architects combined with the regional insight of the local university and the helping hand of our endowment fund represent an ideal combination for opening up new topics and urban flourishing of the city today and in the future."
Ing. Martin Hrdlička, Ph.D., MBA
- I come from a family of Boleslav patriots.
My grandfather, my father, and now I myself work at Škoda, where I am the Head of Chassis
and Powertrain Development. In addition to my technical
role in the automotive industry, I am also a member of the Board of Trustees of
the Škoda Auto Endowment Fund, and as the guarantor of the "Culture Has a Green
Light" program, I strive to help the cultural development of the region.
Architecture combines the best of technology and art. When you add Mladá Boleslav to the mix, at the exhibition "The Future of Mladá Boleslav through the Eyes of Architects," three of my life passions intersect. That's why I am pleased to at least briefly welcome you to this brochure showcasing student projects full of creativity. These projects work with the close connection between the carmaker and the city and push this symbiosis into the future with surprising urban-architectural solutions. On behalf of the Škoda Auto Foundation, I wish Mladá Boleslav and young architects as many similar visions as possible, which will turn into reality. We will be happy to be a part of it.
Ceremonial signing of the memorandum and discussion of the exhibition The Future of the City of Mladá Boleslav through the Eyes of Architects
16. 05. 2023 Atrium of the Education Center Na Karmeli
Schedule of the festive meeting:
4:30 – 5:00 p.m.
- Closed meeting of representatives of CTU, ŠAU and Škoda Auto Foundation
5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
- Ceremonial opening of the exhibition for invited guests and the public
- Model discussion open to the public and invited experts
CTU exhibition in the Na Karmeli Education Center
The future of the city of Mladá Boleslav through the eyes of architects
The exhibition shows how the author of the exhibition, Adam Zajaček, and other students from the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague under the guidance of prof. Ing. M.Sc. Acad. architect Petr Hájek and Ing. architect Jaroslav Hulín.
The central element of the exhibition is a specific hanging installation that depicts the sensitive connection of the city with the Škoda Auto car company, including the students' ideas for the future development of the city.
The works were created as a joint project of the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University in Prague and the Škoda Auto Foundation Fund with the support of the Škoda Auto University of the Statutory City of Mladá Boleslav and the Art-Now Foundation Fund.
The exhibition can be visited during the opening hours of the Education Center Na Karmeli.
prof. Ing. Mgr. Akad. arch. PETR HÁJEK
- I am an architect in my own studio, Petr Hajek Architects, and for almost 20 years also an university lecturer at the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University. The exhibition, entitled City of Electromobility, will present 19 unique projects by 19 students of the Faculty of Architecture of the Czech Technical University who have reflected on the architectural and urban development of Mladá Boleslav, specifically the area of the city and the Škoda Auto car factory. We worked on the projects for almost 3 semesters and both bachelor and master students brought their ideas. Among their designs we can find atypical houses, unexpected solutions to missing parking spaces, cultural and co-working centres and steel footbridges connecting historically significant parts of the city. I am glad that the students did not shy away and developed very diverse and confident proposals for how Mladá Boleslav could develop further.
Adam Zajaček
- Adam
Zajaček is a graduating student at the FA CTU. Under the brand
NotReallyCorrect, together with Tran Anh Tuan, they deal with solutions on the
border of bad taste and look for beauty where others would condemn it.
The installation in the form of a suspended model of Mladá Boleslav on workshop cranes shows the sensitive bond between the future of the city and the further fate of the car company. Its look refers to industrial history and shows off the beauty of common elements and primitive connections, which in a harmonious mutual connection form a specific visual of the whole. - In order to solve the current problems and needs of the city, individual student works deal with the use of places that are difficult to use at first glance. From these approaches, atypical projects are subsequently created, the aim of which is to arouse discussion about the new potentials of these overlooked locations and initiate the interest of the city and its inhabitants in thinking about the form of life in it.