In view of the pending energy crisis, the University of Münster is not only required to cut back on energy consumption, but also wishes to save energy wherever possible. The German federal government has announced its goal to reduce energy consumption at universities by 20 % compared to the past five-year average. To achieve this goal, we will be implementing various measures which meet or even exceed the mandates provided in the following laws and regulations:

• Energy Security Act (EnSiG)
• Regulation on Short-term Measures to Secure the Energy Supply (EnSikuMaV)
• Other state ordinances

The WWU is determined to mitigate the impact of these measures on students and staff as much as possible. However, in order to achieve the legally mandated energy-saving goal, some cut-backs will be unavoidable and may adversely affect our comfort zones in our day-to-day work, instruction, research and study at the WWU.
Please note that the following measures may deviate from those implemented at the Faculty of Medicine (FB 05) and the medical campus.

Centrally organised energy-saving measures – General measures

• Maximum office temperature of 19 °C (e.g. offices, lecture halls, seminar rooms, labs)

  In accordance with federal regulations (EnSikuMaV), the temperature may not exceed 19 °C in offices where employees complete physically less strenuous activities sitting down. Although we have implemented technical measures to reduce overall heating, meeting this requirement will depend largely on your heating and ventilation behaviour.

  Please make sure the thermostats on the radiators in your offices and workrooms are turned to a position between 2 and 3. If the temperature in your office exceeds 19 °C despite the technical measures already taken, please lower the thermostats manually.
  If your thermostat is malfunctioning, contact the responsible building manager.
  When offices are not in use (e.g. on home-office days or at weekends), please adjust the thermostats to position 1. Also note that upon returning to work on Monday morning, your offices will not yet be heated to 19 °C.
  Compensating for temporary discomfort, e.g. by using heater fans, is not permitted!

• No heating for common areas inside buildings

  Heating is not permitted in common areas in WWU buildings where individuals only visit or pass through temporarily (foyers, corridors, tea kitchens etc.).

• Cold water instead of hot water

  Tap water heating systems which deliver hot water through the taps in tea kitchens or sanitary facilities have been or will be switched off.

• Restricted swimming pool operation

  Similar to measures in place for municipal bathing facilities, the water temperature of the University swimming pool will be gradually reduced along with its opening hours during the winter.

• Outdoor and building illumination

  • Buildings (e.g. the Schloss) will no longer be illuminated at night. Naturally this measure does not apply to safety and emergency lighting (pathway illumination etc.).
  • Supplementary lighting, e.g. at bike stands, will be shut off between 10 pm and 6 am and between 9 am and 4 pm. This does not apply to safety and emergency lighting.

• Ventilation systems in standard operation mode

  Ventilation systems in the lecture halls are operating in standard mode. This means that the air in lecture halls is automatically circulated should the system’s sensors detect deterioration of air quality.

• IT infrastructure

  The WWU IT infrastructure can be partially and/or temporarily shut down to help save energy if necessary. None of these potential measures have been taken (yet) in order to avoid adversely affecting the regular operations of the WWU. However, depending on the severity of the energy crisis, some of these measures may have to be implemented in the short term.

• Energy-efficient lighting

  In recent years the University of Münster has been successively replacing inefficient lighting with energy-saving LED units. This measure will continue in the future.

  • Individual energy-saving measures

    • Facilities

      University facilities are welcome to develop their own energy-saving measures and can implement these within their scope of responsibility without prior approval from the crisis management team. If your unit has developed special energy-saving measures, please share your ideas with us at krisenstab@uni-muenster.de so that we can forward them to other units as best-practice examples.

    • The last one out turns off the lights!

      Reducing our energy consumption by 20 % compared with the past five-year average cannot be entirely achieved through centrally organised measures. Each of us must work together and do their part to achieve this ambitious goal.

      We can save energy simply by turning off the lights. Lights should only be on when they are actually needed. And if you’re the last one to leave the room, please turn off the lights! During your working day, check if any lights are unnecessarily on and switch them off. In offices with multiple light sources and separate switches, only turn those lights on which you absolutely need for your work.

      The same applies to radiators. Make sure that radiators in rooms which require no heating are turned down to position 1.

      For more ideas on how you can save energy at work and at home: https://www.uni-muenster.de/profil/nachhaltigkeit/energiespartipps.html

The state of North Rhine-Westphalia has recently revised the Coronavirus Epidemic Higher Education Regulations (CEHVO). The amendment took effect on 1 April 2023 and will remain in place until 1 October 2023. We wish to briefly inform you about the changes in the following. Alternative provisions may apply to the Faculty of Medicine (FB 05).

Examinations, assigned to one of the six semesters beginning with SoSe 2020 and ending with WiSe 2022/23 (e.g. retakes of exams administered in WiSe 2022/23) can take place in digital form. The specific examination modalities are to be decided by the responsible Dean’s Office.

Examinations administered during SoSe 2023 can also take place in digital form as long as the exam format is didactically suited for this purpose (§ 16). The modalities of the respective examinations are to be determined by the responsible faculty board.

If you have any questions, please contact the Examinations Office responsible for your examination regulations: https://www.uni-muenster.de/wwu/fak_fb/pruefungsaemter.shtml.

We also wish to inform you about three aspects which may be relevant to your studies in the upcoming summer semester:

• Mandatory attendance will take effect again starting in SoSe 2023 for courses with attendance requirements in accordance with their corresponding examination regulations.
• For students with a disability and/or chronic illness, compensation for disadvantages that was introduced in accordance with the CEHVO will no longer be granted for courses in SoSe 2023. It will still be possible, however, to obtain regular compensation for disadvantages for examinations. If you have any questions, please contact the responsible Examinations Office (see link above).
• Pregnant and/or nursing students should refer to https://www.uni-muenster.de/studium/en/hilfeundberatung/mutterschutzgesetz.html for information on the current regulations.

We assume that this will be our last update on matters related to the Coronavirus Epidemic Higher Education Regulations.