This is one of the largest investment projects of the group worldwide: Since 2019, a new, state-of-the-art high-tech site of Zeiss has been rising on an area of around eight hectares in the center of Jena. Currently, around 80 trades with 500 to 600 employees are working on the gigantic construction site. In the next step, they will proceed with the interior finishing and the installation of the technology for the building complex. The complex, designed according to plans by the Neu-Ulm architecture firm Nething, with approximately 118,000 square meters of usable space, is scheduled to be completed by the end of 2026. On the site at Jena Westbahnhof, which was previously used by the high-tech company Schott, all of ZEISS's development units in Jena, as well as a large part of the local production and administrative departments, are to be consolidated. By bundling the departments, the group expects increased synergies in its operational processes; in addition, the Contact to suppliers and partners is expected to become easier. Thus, in two years, around 2,000 of the 3,500 ZEISS employees who work in Jena overall will move to the new site and will research and develop new products there in the future. The vacated areas in the city area of Jena will be developed and marketed by LEG as the lead economic development agency.
Jena is the world's second-largest ZEISS location; the corporation has its roots in this East Thuringian city. It was here that mechanic Carl Zeiss founded the company in the 19th century. The new ZEISS Hightech Campus will further strengthen Jena's reputation and significance as a traditional yet future-oriented investment and high-tech location.
