Prussian research institute for hydraulic engineering, earthworks and shipbuilding
| Prussian research institute for hydraulic engineering, earthworks and shipbuilding (VWS) | |
|---|---|
| Category: | research Institute |
| Carrier: | German Empire |
| Consist: | 1903-1945 |
| Facility location: | Berlin Tiergarten |
| Branch offices: | Berlin-Karlshorst , Potsdam-Marquardt |
| Absorbed in: | Research institute for shipping, hydraulic engineering and foundation engineering ; Federal Institute for Hydraulic Engineering |
| Type of research: | Applied research |
| Subjects: | Engineering |
| Areas of expertise: | Shipbuilding , hydraulic engineering , earthworks |
The Prussian Research Institute for Hydraulic Engineering, Earthworks and Shipbuilding ( VWS ), founded in Berlin in 1903 , is the first state hydraulic engineering research facility in Germany . Until 1919 the institute was called " Royal Research Institute for Hydraulic Engineering and Shipbuilding ", until 1938 " Prussian Research Institute for Hydraulic Engineering and Shipbuilding ". After the war, the institute split up into the Research Institute for Shipping, Hydraulic Engineering and Foundation Engineering of the GDR and its West German , now all-German counterpart, the Federal Institute for Hydraulic Engineering .
history
The first considerations for founding a hydraulic engineering experimental institute on the Schleuseninsel in Berlin-Tiergarten existed as early as 1884. Nine years later, the Prussian Ministry of Public Works took the decision to set up a “research institute for hydraulic engineering and shipbuilding”. The first planned locations in Übigau and Danzig failed for various reasons.
In the end, it was Kaiser Wilhelm II personally who turned down another building site in the Berlin zoo. Instead, his letter says that “ the so-called lock island seems to be very suitable for you. ". With that, the question of location was resolved from the highest authority, and construction began in 1901.
The heart of the system was a 157 m long, 10.5 m wide and 3.2 m deep, covered flow channel including a tow truck. A channel for hydraulic engineering tests was also created in a tram arch on the island . On April 16, 1903, the " Royal Research Institute for Hydraulic Engineering and Shipbuilding " took on its role as a state research institute and began operations.
The first years were dominated by the naval program of the Reichsmarine . Until the construction of a marine towing facility in Berlin-Lichtenrade , the VWS was almost entirely busy towing new warship models. At the same time, the equipment and size of the VWS grew through various investments in the early years. A turning point was marked by the expansion of the institution in 1926 by adding an outdoor area in Potsdam-Marquardt . From now on, large-scale, extensive hydraulic engineering models could be built here and used for experiments. In the same year, VWS was also expanded to include its earthworks department. Together with the now almost fully developed lock island, the VWS has now formed a world-class hydraulic engineering institute.
As the number of attempts continued to rise, the VWS was again expanded to include a branch in 1934. From now on, hydraulic engineering tests independent of the weather were possible in a former aircraft hangar in Berlin-Karlshorst . The work of the shipbuilding department was subject to the strictest confidentiality from 1933. Because the third department, earthworks, became more and more important, it was included in the name of the institute in 1938.
VWS's research operations came to an abrupt, temporary end during bombing raids in March and November 1943, which massively damaged the facility on the lock island. In 1945 the Research Institute for Shipping, Hydraulic Engineering and Foundation Engineering (FAS) took over the facilities of the former VWS; With the Federal Institute for Hydraulic Engineering in Karlsruhe , an institute in the tradition of VWS was also founded in the Federal Republic . After reunification, the FAS was absorbed into the federal agency.
The system was supplemented in 1975 by a circulation and cavitation stench designed by the architect Ludwig Leo , which is 120 meters long and holds a water volume of 3300 tons. It is used for experiments on flow and ship technology, such as B. for cavitation studies on propellers. The pink tube is made of polyurethane and is supported by a cobalt blue steel structure. The actual measuring section is located on the third floor of this building, here ship models are exposed to the pressure of the water flowing past at up to ten meters per second.
After its closure as an independent company on January 1, 1995, VWS was incorporated into the Technical University of Berlin as a central facility . In November 2017, the renovation of the circulation tank , which is now a listed building , was completed. The Wüstenrot Foundation contributed 3.5 million euros to this.
organization
The VWS was divided into its two departments, shipbuilding and hydraulic engineering. The director of VWS largely steered the course of the institute. Especially Hans-Detlef Krey shaped the institution during his tenure from 1910 until his death 1928th
With the acquisition of the hydraulic engineering site in Potsdam, the two departments separated from each other. Until 1926 hydraulic engineering carried out its earthworks itself, after which it made sense to create a separate department due to the increasing workload.
Difficulties were caused by the simultaneous dependence of VWS on the Ministry of Public Works and the Berlin Police Headquarters, which the Ministry has entrusted with direct responsibility. It was not until 1935 that the institution reached the rank of intermediate authority and was now only subordinate to the Reich and Prussian Ministry of Food and Agriculture .
Projects
The shipbuilding department with its trough served almost exclusively at the beginning of the Reichsmarine. But even later, when the Navy operated its own channel, the proportion of military ship models in the VWS remained high. The naturally given length of the lock island also limited the expansion of the tugboat to the same extent, so that the shipbuilding department was unable to carry out some projects.
The hydraulic engineering department, on the other hand, was able to implement major plans after its expansion in Potsdam. Model tests for the canalization of the Don and the confluence of the Volga-Don Canal let the VWS work on behalf of the Soviet Union a year before the National Socialists came to power . In their time, the projects were considered to be considerable hydraulic engineering challenges. Attempts to build the Dr. Gabriel Terra dam on the Río Negro in Uruguay underpin the institution's international reputation. During attempts to damming the Eider , the VWS also developed its own device for generating a model of the natural tidal current .
literature
- Eger, Dix and Seifert: The research institute for hydraulic engineering and shipbuilding in Berlin . In: Journal of Construction . Volume 57 (1907), col. 123–152, 323–344, plates 15–17, 30–32. Volume 58 (1908), col. 67–78, plates 20–21. Digitized in the holdings of the Central and State Library Berlin .
- Günter Glazik: Historical development of the hydraulic engineering experimental system in the research institutes Berlin-Karlshorst and Potsdam. In: Bulletin of the Federal Institute for Hydraulic Engineering. No. 82, 2000.
- Horst Oebius: An outline of the history of the experimental institute for hydraulic engineering and shipbuilding, Berlin, between 1884 and 1945. In: Bulletin of the Federal Institute for Hydraulic Engineering. No. 78, 1998.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b Millions for the pink tube. In: Der Tagesspiegel . November 22, 2013, accessed December 5, 2013 .
- ↑ Katharina Maaser: The construction history of the large circulation and cavitation tank UT2 of VWS Berlin . In: INSITU. Zeitschrift für Architekturgeschichte 5 (1/2013), pp. 117–126.
- ↑ a b Technical University renovates "Pink Tube" in Tiergarten. In: Berliner Morgenpost . November 18, 2013, accessed November 18, 2013 .
- ↑ The blue-pink water monster at tagesspiegel.de, accessed on November 26, 2017