After the partial collapse of the Carola Bridge in Dresden, the question arises: What is the state of bridges in the country? Many were built after the Second World War and may not be designed for today's traffic. Bridge researcher Torsten Leutbecher's assumptions also point in this direction. However, the professor of solid construction at the University of Siegen gives the all-clear in an interview with SWR Aktuell: "You can't deduce from this that collapses are regularly associated with them. After all, we also have a parallel system for monitoring buildings". Changes such as cracks are detected at an early stage during regular checks so that a collapse like the one in Dresden can be avoided. SWR Aktuell presenter Gerald Pinkenburg spoke to bridge researcher Leutbecher about what such inspections look like and how safe they are - also with regard to cost-cutting measures from politicians. Listen in the ARD Audiothek

An overview of the courses offered can be found here:

Lecture announcement SoSe 2026

With its unique combination of a top-class specialist program, accompanying exhibition and networking, BetonTage is regarded as the most important training and communication platform for the precast concrete industry. This year marks the 70th edition of the congress. From March 10 to 12, 2026, around 1,500 specialists and managers from concrete and precast plants, planners, architects and representatives from the construction industry, science and the public sector came together at the Congress Centrum Ulm. Under the motto "Markets for people", they learned about current technical and legal developments, future trends and best practices in the concrete industry.

The topic of Professor Torsten Leutbecher's presentation on the panel "Concrete in structural design" was the safety concept for tensile steel fiber reinforced ultra-high performance concrete. Further information

The façade of a building is much more than just its outer shell. It is the face of a building. It makes the technical, social and political demands of the building visible and legible. It communicates messages that are - more or less consciously - addressed to the public and significantly shape the experience of urban space.

In the course of the multi-layered discussion of the building turnaround, the façade is also receiving new attention in terms of its function and design. The Building Day brings together different voices and perspectives on the topic. Sociological, ecological and economic, as well as design and technical aspects of the façade will be examined. The discussion will focus on the major issues surrounding the conversion of our cities; the perception of architecture in urban space as the basis for a sensitive approach to existing structures, the significance of the façade in the context of the paradigm shift in architecture from new construction to conversion through resource-saving and energy-efficient solutions in existing buildings and the challenge of developing new façade designs that are both aesthetically and technically convincing.

The Siegen Building Day is an event organized by the Förderverein für Architektur und Bauingenieurwesen (fab e.v.), supported by the University of Siegen.

Further information on Bautag 2025 and registration: eveeno.com/314326868

This year's symposium of the Fédération internationale du béton(fib) took place from June 16 to 18 in Antibes (France) under the motto "Concrete structures: extend lifespan, limit impacts". More than 350 presentations provided an exciting overview of the latest research findings and developments in concrete and reinforced concrete construction and invited participants to engage in professional discussions with international experts.

The Chair of Concrete Structures at the University of Siegen was represented in Antibes by Mr. Sina Yüksel with the paper "A comparative study on design approaches for Ultra-High Performance Concrete flexural elements". Mr. Yüksel presented the current results of his research in the session "UHPFRC". download

22.07.2025 - In the winter semester 2025/2026, the lectures of the Chair of Concrete and Masonry Structures will start on 13.10.2025.

An overview of the courses offered can be found here:

Lecture announcement WiSe 2025/2026

12.07.2025 - At the invitation of Autobahn GmbH, Westphalia branch, Dillenburg branch, this year's bridge construction excursion took place on 04.07.2025. The destination was the Sechshelden viaduct located between the Haiger/Burbach and Dillenburg junctions. The participants were welcomed on site by Mr. Marco Gräb, head of the Dillenburg branch office, who provided comprehensive information about the planning and current status of the construction project.

The existing Sechshelden viaduct was completed in 1968. The half of the bridge in the direction of Frankfurt is currently being replaced, while traffic flows over the half of the bridge in the direction of Dortmund. The bridge half in the direction of Dortmund will then be demolished and rebuilt. The total length of both halves of the bridge is 937 m (north superstructure) and 916 m (south superstructure).

The photo on the left shows the half of the existing bridge that is still under traffic, which was reinforced with external prestressing in 2017, as well as a pillar of the southern half of the bridge under construction directly next to it. The middle photo shows one of several load towers that support the existing structure at the tendon coupler joints, which are at risk of fatigue. The photo on the right shows the reinforcement and the internal tendons of the new superstructure of the southern half of the bridge, which was constructed using launching scaffolding.

"Rethinking sustainability" was the motto of the 69th BetonTage. The leading congress of the concrete and precast concrete industry took place from 11 to 13 March 2025 at the Congress Centrum Ulm, featuring a new program structure and focusing on the ecological and digital transformation of the construction industry. What can drive the paradigm shift forward? What will the building of the future look like? What leading role will prefabrication play? The contributions spanned a thematic arc from structural prefabricated construction to lightweight construction, serial and modular construction, additive manufacturing and the reuse of concrete components. Selected architectural solutions made of lightweight concrete and cast stone also demonstrated the potential of precast concrete construction in residential and commercial buildings.

The topic of Professor Torsten Leutbecher's presentation on the panel "Concrete in structural design" was the tensile and flexural strength of thin load-bearing elements made of ultra-high-strength concrete. Further information

The German Committee for Reinforced Concrete (DAfStb) has approved a research project on "Derivation of the design value of the post-cracking tensile strength for steel fiber-reinforced ultra-high-strength concrete taking into account the size dependence of the scattering". Further information

10,763 pieces! This was the correct answer to the question about the number of steel fibers in the 100 mm x 100 mm cross-section of a concrete sample. The exhibit was part of a permanent exhibition (left photo) by the Chair of Concrete Structures at the Paul-Bonatz-Straße campus (Leo PB) on the subject of "Ultra-high-strength concrete", one of the research areas of the chair.

Using different strategies, students Robert Henning (Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, 1st place, estimated value 12,713 fibers), Gashi Malsor (Master's degree in Mechanical Engineering, 2nd place, estimated value 8,500 fibers) and Frederik Epe (Dual Bachelor's degree in Civil Engineering, 3rd place, estimated value 7,500 fibers) came closest to the correct value.

In recognition, the three students were presented with canteen vouchers worth 20, 10 and 5 euros by Lennart Heck, research assistant at the Chair of Solid Construction and organizer of the competition, on 05.11.2024. The photo on the right shows Lennart Heck presenting the prizes together with Frederik Epe and Robert Henning (from right to left).

The German Research Foundation (DFG) has approved a research project on "Rotational capacity of plastic bending crack joints in combined reinforced UHPFRC bending beams". Further information