"Navitas is one of the most distinctive and visionary buildings in Aarhus and we are proud to be able to offer a unique setting and experimental facilities for researchers, teaching staff and students within the field of engineering. Now the building is completed we can really begin to realise our ambitions of creating an innovative environment."

Dean Niels Christian Nielsen from Science and Technology did not economise with his rhetoric when describing the 38,700 square metre Navitas building on the Aarhus docklands at the inauguration of the building on 5 September last year.

Five months later a storm called Egon hit with such force that around 150 square metres of the roof above the entrance tore itself loose from the building and ended up spread over a large area.

The fire brigade was called to look for any injured people, but fortunately they only found material damage after Egon’s stormy visit at the beginning of January.

A matter for the insurance company

Chairman of the owners' association and managing director of the INCUBA science park (also part of Navitas) Niels Christian Sidenius tells Omnibus that it is now up to the owners’ association’s insurance company to find out how something this serious could happen during Egon’s visit to the docklands. Once this has been clarified, they will also be responsible for the question of compensation.

Niels Christian Sidenius also tells us that the owners' association would very much like to avoid similar situations in future and that they have themselves taken the initiative to examine a similar roof construction over a terrace next to the cafeteria at the opposite end of the building.

"We don't know whether the construction is exactly the same. But we presume that it is and we’re therefore examining whether it has been built as it should be or whether there is a faulty construction. You can call it due diligence on our part," says Niels Christian Sidenius.

Translated by Peter Lambourne