Semmelweis University, Budapest, Hungary

For more than twenty years, the Faculty of Health Sciences at Semmelweis University has been expanding in measured stages. The first refurbished wing opened in 2001, the second followed in 2004. With the completion of the new five-storey building that now links two street fronts, the campus is finally complete. Covering roughly 4,500 m², the structure is named after Hungarian nursing pioneer Zsuzsanna Kossuth and provides contemporary teaching and learning spaces, including two lecture halls, laboratories and generous breakout areas.

Textured concrete inside and out

The architects at STUDIO FRAGMENT KFT. opted for a consistent material language built around approximately 130 m² of textured exposed concrete. Both the façade and interior feature precast elements produced with the formliner 2/29 Fulda from the RECKLI SELECT series.

The concrete elements were manufactured by the Hungarian precast plant Ornamentika Kft. The vertically aligned, U-shaped ribs create a calm and precise surface pattern that plays with light and shadow while visually connecting the building’s interior and exterior spaces.

Award-winning design

The project’s considered material choices and detailing have been formally recognised: in 2023 the building received the Grand Prize in the Public Building category at Hungary’s “Év Háza – Building of the Year” awards.