Science Experience Facilities
Fostering Children’s Future Through Fun Experiential Opportunities
Congrès Inc. has been involved in a public-private sector project. In 2023, we launched Science Lab IMAGINUS, the first science experience facility fully managed and planned by Congrès, in a former elementary school in Tokyo. Additionally, Congrès serves as the designated facility manager for six science museums throughout Japan (Tokyo, Yokohama, Chiba, Kobe, Niigata, Yamanashi). We also manage the operation of Children’s Science Center Hachi Lab in Shibuya ward on consignment, helping to nurture the next generation through science at a total of eight facilities.
Science Experience Facility Directly Managed by Congrès “IMAGINUS”
5-minute walk from Koenji Station in Tokyo.
We launched a unique science facility
in a former elementary school. IMAGINUS aims to offer space and time where visitors can naturally have fun
in a science environment, while simultaneously raising awareness that the world of science is filled with
originality, and aspects that can surprise and move people.
By starting the experience with “fun”
as the primary focus, visitors can discover the science that lies within, leading to curiosity to learn
more about science. The museum’s name comprises “Imagine” and “Us,” and is also an anagram of “Suginami,”
the city’s name.
5-minute walk from Koenji Station in Tokyo.
Utilization of Former School Buildings
Making full use of elementary school facilities, such as using the science room as a laboratory.
Abundant Experience Corners
We provide science shows, workshops, and other opportunities for children and adults to learn while having fun.
The Nutty Scientists® Show in Japan for the First Time
The Nutty Scientists®, an experiential science program in which more than 10 million people from over 55 countries participate annually, has now come to Japan.
Congrès’ Designated Management of Six Science Museums
Chiba City Science Museum
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The museum features exhibits that allow visitors to joyfully explore the fascinating worlds of vision, sound, light, and numbers. It includes a hybrid planetarium system that uses two systems simultaneously: the optical star projector “CHIRON” and the digital planetarium “Virtarium II,” which displays CG images.
15-minute walk from Chiba Station on the JR Sobu Line, 6-minute walk from Chiba-Chuo Station on the Keisei Line, 5-minute walk from Yoshikawa Koen Station on the Chiba Urban Monorail.
Itabashi Science & Education Hall
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The interactive permanent exhibit, themed around everyday science in daily life, is free of charge.
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The museum offers extensive exhibits featuring real dinosaur fossils and insect specimens.
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The planetarium, which evokes a sense of nostalgia, features an 18-meter diameter dome and 197 seats in a horizontal layout, allowing a 360-degree view of the sky. Although it projects only 8,500 stars up to magnitude 6.5, it faithfully reproduces the starry sky that is visible to the naked eye.
5-minute walk from Kami-Itabashi in Tokyo.
Hamagin Space Science Center
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The entire building is designed as a gigantic spaceship.
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Five exhibition rooms with a different theme on each floor, where both children and adults can touch, experience, and enjoy learning about space and science.
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Experience the universe created by the awe-inspiring images and beautifully realistic stars projected across the entire 23-meter diameter dome by the world’s most advanced planetarium projector, showcasing stars at the highest level ever seen.
3-minute walk from Yokodai Station in Kanagawa.
Congrès’ Designated Management of Six Science Museums
Niigata Science Museum
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Each of the four exhibition areas – “Science in Nature,” “Science in Our Lives,” and “History of Technology in Niigata” – offers interactive exhibits where visitors can experience the wonders of science while having fun.
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The largest planetarium on the Japan Sea side regularly screens a variety of programs daily that visitors of all ages can enjoy.
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Numerous crafting and experimental events primarily on weekends, providing opportunities for hands-on learning and creativity.
20 minutes by bus from Niigata Station.
Yamanashi Prefectural Science Center
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Visitors can directly interact with exhibits, engaging in various scientific experiments and activities to learn about the wonders of science firsthand.
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Experience the awe-inspiring visuals spanning across the entire 20-meter diameter dome and the mesmerizingly realistic stars of the “Space Theater.”
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Through experimental workshops and various hands-on experience events, visitors can learn the latest scientific knowledge and technologies.
30-minute walk on the nature trail from the North Exit of JR Kofu Station.
Bando Kobe Science Museum
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As the only planetarium in the city and beloved for providing access to the starry skies, it also serves as a versatile facility beyond traditional purposes, hosting live concerts and public viewings.
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In the first to sixth exhibition rooms, visitors can explore and learn about various themes such as the principles of force and matter, information, the universe, science and technology in Kobe, life, and creativity.
3-minute walk from Minami Koen Station on the Kobe New Transit Port Liner Line.
Managing & Operating
Children’s Science Center Hachi Lab
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“Special Exhibition” is an experiential exhibit on the theme of “Nature, Technology, Mathematics, and Environmental SDGs.” Exhibits change five times a year. The Permanent Exhibition is supervised by mathematician Hitoshi Akiyama.
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Workshops are held mainly on Saturdays, Sundays, holidays, and long school holidays. You can observe, experiment, and make things.
8-minute walk from the West Exit of the South Ticket Gate of JR Shibuya Station. Shibuya Ward Cultural Center Owada, 3rd floor.
A Featured Case
Community Collaborative Events
Hamagin Space Science Center
“The Yokodai Science Club,” jointly operated by Hamagin Space Science Center and the Yokodai Town Development Council, collaborates to host events like “Join the One-Day Play Park!” during summer vacations at Yokodai Station Front Park adjacent to the museum. This event combines the museum’s independent research activities with the club’s classes. Local residents and university students on internships participate in operating the event, thus promoting intergenerational exchange and fostering community engagement.
Click here for various other examples of facility utilization.