Groundbreaking Ceremony of the Schwarz Project Campus

The groundbreaking ceremony on the “Obere Fundel” construction site in Bad Friedrichshall today, Wednesday 25th August, marked the start of the construction phase of the Schwarz Project Campus. The Schwarz Group is thus strengthening its presence in the Heilbronn region thanks to this location.

Completion of the first construction phase, which shall comprise five buildings, is scheduled for 2026. As such, workplaces for about 3,500 predominantly IT employees will be generated.

The architecturally appealing buildings are tiered in a terrace-like setting. Ceiling-high glazing ensures offices suffused with light. The extensive greenery is a characteristic feature of the construction project with the buildings being located around a “green center”. In addition to the office spaces, accompanying infrastructural facilities, such as a restaurant with seating for about 1,000 employees, childcare facilities accommodating 280, and a large sports area with physiotherapy and course offers will come into being.

A mobility concept was developed to link the site to transportation systems which is based on three pillars: local public transport, infrastructure for pedestrians and cyclists as well as personal motorized transport.  To optimally connect the Schwarz Project Campus to local public transport, a new municipal tram stop will be constructed within walking distance. Moreover, there will be parking spaces for cycles and automobiles for both employees and visitors, and the majority of these will be equipped with charging stations for electric vehicles.

“Thanks to the Schwarz Campus Project, we are rising to the need for a new type of collaboration between the IT and digital areas, which are constantly gaining in importance, and our core business.  Simultaneously, we are sending out a powerful message to all of the people in the region:  no one has to leave this region to find exciting, IT jobs offering a secure future! Gerd Chrzanowski, Acting General Partner of the Schwarz Group, stressed the importance of the construction project for the future of the Schwarz Group stating, “We thank local government for its significant support, particularly where the infrastructure is concerned, and without which, realization of the project on site, would not have been possible”.

“Belonging to Europe’s largest retailer, the innovative Schwarz Project Campus as a central location is a future-oriented project, particularly for the Schwarz Group IT employees. The new construction is most certainly also a visible commitment to our home and our region. We symbolically stand for the whole of the State of Baden-Wuerttemberg, where successful companies, a high standard of living in the countryside and in the cities, as well as excellent state and local government framework conditions, mutually reinforce each other, making investments possible. The strong ties to our home, as well as actively fulfilling responsibility, make us strong in Baden-Wuerttemberg, creating future potential and ultimately turning us into one of the most innovative and economically powerful regions in Europe and in the world. The impact of investment and innovation on the future of our state and our region as a result of the Schwarz Project Campus cannot be estimated highly enough. A digital lighthouse, which could be located anywhere in the world - it is great, and indeed sensational, that its foundations will now be firmly anchored here in our home soil, shining a beacon of light from our state to the world”, emphasized Thomas Strobl, Deputy Minister-President of Baden-Wuerttemberg and Minister of the Interior, Digitalization and Local Government.

Minister of Transport, Winfried Hermann, praised the transportation links above all: “I am very pleased that the Schwarz is contributing as a partner to the Heilbronn/Neckarsulm Mobility Pact. By working together with other Mobility Pact partners, we make it possible for employees to be able to reach the Project Campus by public transport, by cycle and by automobile. Above all, I placed importance on the new Kochendorf Süd train station and a good cycle infrastructure in terms of attractive offers to new employees. In this context, and together with corporate mobility management, an active, concrete contribution to a climate-friendly turnaround in traffic policy in Baden-Wuerttemberg will be accomplished.”

“Today we have reached one of the most important milestones on the way to turning the Schwarz Project Campus into reality. We are convinced that this is also an important milestone on the way to the continued positive development of our city”, stated Timo Frey, the Mayor of Bad Friedrichshall.  

Mario Pirwitz, the Chief General Engineering Project Manager at JSWD Architects, stressed the architectural quality of the buildings: “The most modern, light-suffused working environments on a Campus are emerging here and they will promote communication and encounters between all employees.”

Further Information

Find more information on the Schwarz Group Campus here projektcampus.schwarz. The Schwarz Group will be regularly reporting on the current status and progress of the construction project there.