Prof. Dr. Ludger Hovestadt

Ludger Hovestadt has been Full Professor of Architecture and CAAD since July 1, 2000. He was born in 1960 in Gelsenkirchen (D) and studied architecture at the RWTH Aachen (D) and the HfG in Vienna (A) under Prof. Holzbauer. Upon completion of his diploma in 1987, he worked as a scientific researcher with Prof. F. Haller and Prof. N. Kohler at the Technical University Karlsruhe (D) where he received his doctorate in 1994. Between 1997 and 2000, Dr. Hovestadt was a visiting professor for the department CAAD at the University of Kaiserslautern (D). He is married and father of four children.

Ludger Hovestadt`s research endeavors were always interdisciplinary: Architecture, computer science, mechanical engineering, robotics and cognitive psychology. His interests are in the development of design tools and the management of over-complex systems with emphasis on "Generative Design", "Digital Production" and "Building Intelligence".

Ludger Hovestadt sees the current research need in the adaptation of technological developments made in other areas of expertise into the building industry, which by nature, acts on a long-term basis. Particular opportunities lie in the extraordinary importance of the building industry in ecology and economy. His research projects are therefore not technological experiments e.g. Virtual Reality, but look for a historical anchor and show a concrete use for current building practice. However, they do not lose the character of basic research in the specific research landscape of architecture and building industry. To increase the effect of his research, Ludger Hovestadt is co-founder of several companies, and thus receives important feedback.