immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: News

  • Energiedienst Group remains on course for growth

    Energiedienst Group remains on course for growth

    According to a communication from Energiedienst Holding AG , the Swiss-German Energiedienst group achieved operating income of 532 million euros in the first half of 2020. In the same period of the previous year, 49 million euros less had been generated. The company attributes the growth primarily to higher prices in the sales business and increased electricity trading volumes.

    Negative effects on the capital market, however, would have reduced the operating result (EBIT) year-on-year by 1 million euros to 12 million, said Energiedienst in the press release. Adjusted for non-operating effects, however, EBIT rose by 8 million to 24 million euros. "Operationally, the Energiedienst Group is doing better in the first half of 2020 than in the same period of the previous year", Jörg Reichert, CEO of Energiedienst Holding AG, is quoted in the announcement. "But the pandemic is not leaving the Energiedienst Group unaffected." The group expects that it will not be able to achieve its originally targeted operating result of 41 million euros for the year as a whole.

    In terms of profit for the period, a year-on-year decline of 6 million to 8 million euros had to be accepted. According to the announcement, the background to this is a negative performance of the company's securities. It reduced the financial result year-on-year by 5 million euros to a loss of 3 million euros.

    "The Energiedienst Group has been one of the first integrated energy companies in Germany and Switzerland to be climate-neutral since January 2020," explains Reichert. This climate neutrality is "the foundation of their business activities", it says in the announcement. According to her, the group was able to win several large business customers in the six months under review “thanks to its climate neutrality”.

  • PriceHubble takes over Checkmyplace

    PriceHubble takes over Checkmyplace

    PriceHubble takes over 100 percent of the shares in Checkmyplace GmbH , according to a media release . According to co-founder Markus Stadler, the company wants to strengthen its position in the German-speaking area. "We can now also offer multinational real estate companies in the DACH region additional added value," he says.

    PriceHubble makes it possible to gain useful knowledge for the valuation of real estate from large amounts of data. For example, it includes data on the location, the neighborhood or noise pollution in the assessment. The data is evaluated and clearly presented with the help of big data analytics and artificial intelligence. PriceHubble is aimed at all parties in the real estate value chain, such as real estate portals, banks, asset managers, insurance companies, real estate investors and private individuals.

    Checkmyplace delivers services and products based on various data and supports professional users in the real estate industry in working more efficiently. After completion of the takeover, the company will appear under the name PriceHubble Austria.

    PriceHubble was founded in 2016. The Zurich-based company already has locations in Paris, Berlin and now also in Vienna. As a result of the takeover, over 70 employees work for the company.

  • Graubünden luxury residences should be vacant less often

    Graubünden luxury residences should be vacant less often

    The University of Applied Sciences of Graubünden has examined how the added value of luxury residences that are often vacant can be improved. In this context, the Institute for Tourism and Leisure ( ITF ) investigated the question of how their owners can become convinced renters. In Graubünden they have been “neglected”, writes the FH in a press release . However, because the trend is moving from overnight stays in a hotel to one's own holiday home, this clientele should not be neglected.

    However, the existing data is too thin for a needs analysis. Therefore, in their study, the researchers examined the willingness to rent similar prestige properties. In the global yacht charter market, they identified high administrative hurdles as well as psychological motives as an obstacle to renting out. These include encroachments on privacy and limited flexibility in personal use.

    The most important finding from this needs analysis, however, is "that both the rental of superyachts and luxury residences are a matter of trust". So that the potential of the often vacant luxury properties in the high-priced Alpine destinations can be used, "all tasks that arise must be managed by a coordinator role". It is your job to guarantee that all service participants work together as smoothly as possible. “The rest then comes naturally, because satisfied landlords generate satisfied tenants,” says the message.

  • Axpo President calls for a sliding market premium

    Axpo President calls for a sliding market premium

    In a joint guest commentary for the “Tages-Anzeiger”, two leading representatives of the Swiss energy industry take a hard line against the Federal Council's plans to implement the Energy Strategy 2050. “Switzerland has the wrong instruments for promoting renewable energies. We have a suggestion on how this can be changed, ”write Thomas Sieber, Chairman of the Board of Directors of the energy company Axpo , and Gianni Operto, President of AEE Suisse , the umbrella organization for renewable energies and energy efficiency.

    The proposal can be summarized in two words: Moving market premium. The Federal Council proposes a model with investment contributions for the energy law revision. The amounts are fixed in advance. From the authors' point of view, the problem is that it will hardly be possible to determine the most economically efficient contribution amount. Either there is unnecessary over-funding or too little funds are budgeted, which leads to the shutdown of plants that are no longer profitable. The sliding market premium, for which a “broad alliance of the Swiss energy industry” advocates, is already being used successfully in other countries. Production capacities would be put out to tender in a competition. "Those interested with the lowest offers are guaranteed a minimum remuneration for the electricity produced over a certain period of time – but only if the market price does not cover this." The sliding market premium supports precisely and only as much as necessary. It is therefore not a subsidy, but a fair price tag for a central service.

    Since the expansion of renewable capacities in Switzerland is currently not profitable for electricity suppliers, Swiss energy suppliers and institutional investors invested abroad. At the end of 2019, the expansion of renewable capacities financed in this way had increased to 11.5 terawatt hours, almost a fifth of the total annual production in Switzerland.

  • Administrative court slows down the innovation park

    Administrative court slows down the innovation park

    The cantonal administrative court is withdrawing the legal basis for the planned construction of the Zurich Innovation Park. As the court wrote in a statement on Tuesday, with a ruling on July 8th, it revoked the cantonal building department's ruling on the cantonal design plan for the innovation park.

    Such a design plan is only possible for specific individual buildings or individual systems. The design plan for the innovation park with its perimeter of 36 hectares and a total usable area of up to 410,000 square meters does not fall below that. The “special purpose of promoting innovation” does not change anything. "Due to its dimensions and the intended uses, the design plan does not create a project-related, but a general construction zone," says the message.

    The canton has thus exceeded its competencies: Only the municipalities are responsible for defining general building zones. “That is why the cantonal design plan is not available for the intended planning.” In addition, the judges believe that the design plan violates the cantonal framework plan because most of the site is in the cantonal agricultural zone.

    The building management set the design plan on August 9, 2017. Two residents appealed to the cantonal building course court, but were rejected. Its decision is now also overturned by the administrative court. An appeal can now be made to the Federal Supreme Court against the judgment of the Administrative Court.

    The idea of an innovation park in Zurich on the site of the Dübendorf military airfield was the inspiration behind the creation of the Switzerland Innovation Parks . While such parks in Aargau, in the greater Basel area, in Biel, in western and central Switzerland are already making good progress, the idea generator is now in danger of failing. The Zurich government had already applied for a loan of CHF 217.6 million in 2018 for the construction, development and support of the innovation park in Dübendorf.

  • Reconstruction displaces new construction

    Reconstruction displaces new construction

    Overall, the construction industry barely moved in 2019. According to the provisional figures from the Federal Statistical Office ( BFS ), an increase in construction investments in civil engineering of 3.9 percent offset a decline in building construction of 0.9 percent.

    There was a change from new buildings to renovations and expansions. Investments in new civil engineering buildings fell by 6.9 percent, while investments in conversions and expansions rose by 13.2 percent. In building construction, too, investments in renovations and extensions rose by 1.6 percent, while investments in new buildings fell by 2.0 percent.

    This switch to renovations was particularly pronounced among public clients: Last year they invested 8.8 percent more in renovations and extensions and 7.2 percent less in new buildings. Private clients invested 2.2 percent more in conversions and expansions than in 2018, but 1.4 percent less in new buildings.

  • Canton Police of St.Gallen runs on hydrogen

    Canton Police of St.Gallen runs on hydrogen

    "Ecological and sustainable action by the organizations has long since ceased to be desirable, but is expected," said the St.Gallen cantonal police in introducing a report on the authority's latest achievement. Specifically, the canton police now want to meet their responsibility for the environment by using a hydrogen car. So far, a total of 20 electric vehicles have been used by the St.Gallen canton police.

    The new Hyundai Nexo, like electric cars, does not emit any harmful emissions, the press release said. Fast refueling and a range of 600 kilometers per tank are named as further advantages of the hydrogen car.

    However, there are currently hardly any hydrogen filling stations in the region, explains the canton police. She identified Osterwalder St.Gallen AG as currently the only operator of a hydrogen filling station in Eastern Switzerland. The newly acquired Hyundai Nexo is therefore to be assigned to the traffic instruction stationed in St.Gallen.

  • Axpo places green bond via Loanboox

    Axpo places green bond via Loanboox

    Axpo has placed a so-called green bond via the digital capital market platform of the Zurich fintech Loanboox , according to a media release . The fixed-interest bond of CHF 133 million has a term of seven years.

    Axpo intends to use the net proceeds from the bond to invest in renewable energies. The company highlights wind energy and photovoltaic projects. Overall, Axpo wants to use the Green Bond to “strengthen its position as the largest Swiss producer of renewable energies” and expand its group of investors, it is said.

    According to Loanboox, Axpo is the first issuer to place a green bond entirely digitally via the debt capital market platform. "This first bond is proof that our digital process creates added value for all market participants," says Philippe Cayrol, CEO of Loanboox. "We are proud and happy to work with innovative customers and partners to create new standards in terms of transparency, pricing and allocation in the primary market – in Switzerland and Europe," he adds.

  • Virtual real estate fair Home-E-Fair starts

    Virtual real estate fair Home-E-Fair starts

    The idea for the Home-E-Fair was born out of necessity, according to a media release. Because the real estate trade fair season has so far completely fallen into the water due to the Covid 19 crisis. Georges Luks, CEO and Delegate of the Board of Directors of Zurich Sotheby's International Realty , explains how the idea came about to replace trade fairs with a physical presence with a virtual one: “In the home office, it became clear to us that such a trade fair could actually be virtual without any problems can take place. With Crowdhouse we were able to set up this pilot project in a short time. We believe that this model will also be relevant in the future and are motivated to set up further virtual trade fairs on an even larger scale. "

    At the five-day virtual trade fair from July 22nd, interested parties can log into the trade fair platform from home, study real estate offers, and exchange ideas with consultants via live or video chat. In addition, as at every real estate fair, a number of roundtables and lectures are offered.

    At the fair, the partners Zurich Sotheby's International Realty and Crowdhouse complement each other in real estate, from condominiums to multi-family houses, in which Crowdhouse specializes. Ardian Gjeloshi, founder and Chairman of the Board of Directors of Crowdhouse: "Both Zurich Sotheby's International Realty and Crowdhouse speak to the same target group – but from different perspectives: living and investing."

  • ABB Switzerland modernizes SBB locomotives

    ABB Switzerland modernizes SBB locomotives

    As part of the new order, 18 SBB locomotives of the latest generation will be modernized with traction converters from ABB, according to a press release. The Zurich-based and internationally active technology group has its Swiss headquarters in Baden and manufactures traction converters in its plant in Turgi AG. In 2014, ABB received an order from SBB to modernize locomotives with traction converters. With the follow-up order now received, ABB will modernize the entire Re 460 fleet. These are the locomotives of most intercity trains.

    SBB is implementing a modernization program for the fleet, which will extend its service life by 20 years. The new traction converters and additional technical measures can save around 30 gigawatt hours of energy annually, "that's five gigawatt hours more than originally expected," says ABB. According to the report, these energy savings correspond to the “average electricity consumption of 10,000 Swiss households”. For this purpose, the power electronics based on the technology of the 90s are being replaced by energy-efficient, water-cooled IGBT traction converters (insulated-gate bipolar transistor). This retrofit and cooling systems operated with water instead of oil can reduce energy consumption.

    "We are pleased that we are a partner in this major modernization project in the Swiss home market with our drive solution and that we are working closely with SBB to ensure that the vehicles continue to be operated in an energy-efficient manner," said Robert Itschner, Country Managing Director at ABB Switzerland.

  • UBS and iptiQ launch new insurance

    UBS and iptiQ launch new insurance

    UBS joins forces with iptiQ , a subsidiary of reinsurer Swiss Re . Together they are testing a new insurance solution specially designed for UBS's mortgage customers in Switzerland. The offer is accessible via the iptiQ digital platform, according to a communication . Initially, it will be tested for around six months from July 15. Then it should be optimized based on feedback.

    "Protecting yourself against unforeseen events is of central importance for every homeowner," says UBS Switzerland boss Axel Lehmann. "We are pleased to be able to offer our mortgage customers, in cooperation with the Swiss Re subsidiary iptiQ, an innovative offer with which they can cover personal risks quickly and easily."

    Cooperations between banks and insurance companies are already successful in many countries, UBS states in its announcement. In Switzerland, the bank still sees untapped potential in this area.

  • Swiss Prime Site Solutions is developing a new quarter

    Swiss Prime Site Solutions is developing a new quarter

    Swiss Prime Site Solutions is developing a new “living space” for the Swiss Prime Investment Foundation, as stated in a press release by Swiss Prime Site Solutions . The foundation stone for the Riverside project was laid on July 10, 2020. The development is under the motto "Urban living – surrounded by nature". Construction work will begin in the northwest, where the area is located directly on the Aare and closest to the city of Solothurn. From there, the new quarter will develop in further construction stages to the south and east.

    "Anyone who lives and works in the Riverside has, in addition to a chic apartment or a modern workplace with modern infrastructure, a multi-faceted quarter including local recreation on the Aare that meets the highest demands," explains Anastasius Tschopp, CEO of Swiss Prime Site Solutions. He speaks of a "lighthouse project for our client Swiss Prime Investment Foundation (SPA) and at the same time important for the entire Solothurn region".

    Initially, 140 rental apartments are to be built directly on the banks of the Aare. The first tenants should be able to move in in winter 2021. More than 280 Swiss pension funds are both financiers and investors in the SPA. "We are currently carrying out the sixth emission for the SPA," said Tschopp. The subscription period lasts until July 22, 2020. The development program of the customer SPA currently amounts to around CHF 600 million and includes projects and real estate across Switzerland.

  • Porta Samedan is built with recycled building material

    Porta Samedan is built with recycled building material

    The new Porta Samedan shopping center is being realized by Migros Ostschweiz and Pfister Immobilien AG . During these days, the concreting of the floors of the new building is taking place, according to a media release . When it comes to building materials, the partners rely on the circular economy. Recycled products are used for both concrete and cement.

    The one main component in concrete is cement. This comes by train from the Holcim plant in Untervaz GR to the Upper Engadin, where Montebello produces the recycled concrete on site. The Holcim product Susteno is used. According to the information, this is the only resource-saving cement in Europe in which the fine proportion of mixed granulate from demolished buildings is used as an additive, which cannot be used in concrete production. Holcim can completely close the building material cycle with Susteno, as this material would otherwise have to be dumped.

    The other main component in concrete are the aggregates. "Here we rely on recycling: instead of natural gravel, we use demolition material from the region," explains Flurin Wieser from the Engadin construction company Montebello.

    "The Porta Samedan development shows that the building materials industry, with innovative products and solutions, is playing an increasingly important role in the transition to the circular economy and is making a significant contribution to a sustainably built future," said Philippe Rey, Head of Cement Sales German-speaking Switzerland at Holcim Switzerland.

    Porta Samedan is scheduled for completion in 2021. Among other things, it will house the first Migros supermarket in the Engadine.

  • Pandemic slows the housing market

    Pandemic slows the housing market

    The coronavirus pandemic has left its first traces on the housing market, writes SVIT Switzerland in a message on the current online housing index ( OWI ). It is determined every six months by the Association of the Real Estate Industry in cooperation with the Zurich School of Economics ( HWZ ).

    According to the current OWI, the number of advertisements for rental apartments placed on Swiss real estate marketplaces increased by 4 percent year-on-year to around 380,000 rental apartments between April 2019 and March 2020. A simultaneous decrease in the number of days on the market indicates a further increase in demand for rental apartments, explains SVIT.

    However, the lockdown officially ordered in March to contain the coronavirus pandemic led to a 31 percent decline in the number of advertisements across Switzerland compared to the first half of March, SVIT further informs in the press release. “Despite this massive drop in supply”, the time on the market only fell by just under 5 days or 12 percent. This means that "the demand has also decreased by more than a third," writes SVIT.

    In the twelve largest cities in Switzerland, the decline was "even more striking", explains the real estate industry association. In Lugano, the number of advertisements fell by 75 percent in the reporting period, while in Bern, Zurich and Winterthur there were 40 percent fewer advertisements than in the first half of March. A simultaneous only below average decrease in the time on the market shows that “the demand has collapsed even more or has come to a complete standstill,” writes SVIT. The association assumes that there could possibly be a catch-up effect in the second half of this year.

  • Solar offensive should create thousands of jobs

    Solar offensive should create thousands of jobs

    Many jobs have already been destroyed throughout Switzerland by the Corona crisis, others are in danger. The Swiss Energy Foundation ( SES ) sees the increased use of renewable energies, especially solar power, as a means of counteracting this. The SES has commissioned a study on this at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences ( ZHAW ) in Wädenswil ZH. According to the press release on this, a “courageous solar offensive” can create thousands of new jobs in a short period of time. Jürg Rohrer, author of the study and head of the Renewable Energy Research Group at the ZHAW, states: "If we equip the most easily usable areas with solar systems, we need around 14,000 additional jobs." A total of 12,000 of them would be in the Installation of photovoltaic systems, which employees can carry out after only a short training period. In 2000, specialist planners required more specialist knowledge, for which, depending on their previous education, they would need around six months of further training.

    The package of measures of the Energy Strategy 2050, which was adopted in a referendum in May 2017, provides for more energy efficiency and renewable energies to be used in the future energy supply. However, the implementation has so far only got off to a slow start. The SES proposal, which should also be included in the consultation on the revision of the Energy Act, should help to compensate for this deficit. Felix Nipkow, Head of Renewable Energies at SES, mentions a threefold benefit of the initiative: “Investing in solar energy now helps to achieve the climate goals, creates new jobs and strengthens the security of supply in the electricity sector.” The new Energy Act will only be able to come into force in a few years. A solar offensive would trigger investments today and create new jobs quickly. In this way, photovoltaics will become a job engine.

  • Hans Eberle AG produces its own green electricity

    Hans Eberle AG produces its own green electricity

    Around 10 percent of the electricity consumption of the metal goods factory Hans Eberle AG has come from in-house production since this summer. According to the company's media release, the heating, cooling, ventilation and lighting of the new company building, which was also completed this summer, are powered by clean energy from the newly installed hydropower screw in Ortsbach. The Francis turbine that was used earlier "got out" in 2014 after more than 100 years of operation, as the company reports. With this investment, Hans Eberle AG wants to underline its commitment to the sustainable use of resources and make a contribution to climate protection.

    Hans Eberle AG, together with other members of the cooperative, uses the Ennendaner Ortsbach to produce its own electricity. The water is led from the Linth into the Ortsbach and has a constant flow of three cubic meters of water per second, which is quite sufficient for electricity production. The use of water power from the Ortsbach has a long tradition in Ennenda; it used to be used in the textile industry for weaving fabrics.

  • RVBW plans to use four e-buses

    RVBW plans to use four e-buses

    Four electric buses will be operating on RVBW Line 5 from March 2021. They will transport passengers between Baldegg via Baden train station to Ennetbaden. The new buses are equipped with innovative technology from ABB Switzerland. The canton of Aargau announced this in a media release as the customer for the public transport services.

    The project will be carried out in close cooperation with ABB. The Federal Office of Energy has classified it as a flagship project worth supporting. The drive technology is developed at the ABB site in Turgi. The charging station is also from ABB. The batteries are produced in Baden.

    A charging station will be installed at each of the two terminal stops. There buses can be charged in up to six minutes. The canton is contributing almost 1.5 million francs to the investment costs for the charging infrastructure.

    RVBW line 8 between Neuenhof and Wettingen has been operated with an electric bus on a trial basis for two years since mid-December 2019. On these two lines, the RVBW wants to gain initial operational experience with the use of e-buses. In the future, RVBW intends to operate all city bus routes electrically. The switch from internal combustion to electric motors is to take place gradually.

  • Canton Schaffhausen wants to use the Rhine power station itself from 2030

    Canton Schaffhausen wants to use the Rhine power station itself from 2030

    The canton of Schaffhausen wants to take over the Rhine power station near Neuhausen itself in ten years. The concession for the power plant, which was built in 1948 and commissioned in 1950, expires at the end of 2030. Rheinkraftwerk Neuhausen AG (RKN) has applied for the extension of the water rights concession granted 80 years ago by the cantons of Schaffhausen and Zurich. However, the Schaffhausen government council, in coordination with the canton of Zurich, does not want to extend this, but rather declare the so-called reversal for the plant at the Rhine Falls and take over the plant itself. According to the canton's media release , this must be communicated to the previous operator ten years in advance, specifically by December 27, 2020.

    District President and Energy Director Martin Kessler explains the procedure: “At the end of the concession, the canton will have the unique opportunity to take over the power plant. The economic and energy-political potential of the power plant is very interesting for the canton of Schaffhausen and offers considerable opportunities. Incidentally, the continuation of the hydropower plant corresponds to the energy strategy of the federal government and the canton and also makes sense from a climate policy perspective. "

    This means that the added value resulting from the power plant remains in the canton. The RKN currently uses 29.9 cubic meters per second and produces around 45 gigawatt hours of energy per year. The energy production costs are extremely cheap at 2.9 cents.

  • Swarm should enable intelligent charging stations

    Swarm should enable intelligent charging stations

    With Pico, the company smart-me has developed a new charging station for electric vehicles. This connects to the cloud via the local WLAN or cellular network. This makes the station intelligent and can, for example, easily be coupled with a solar system, as a message shows. The operator can decide for himself when and at what price vehicles can be charged at the station.

    Overall, Pico should make the installation of charging stations more attractive. As a result, previously undeveloped areas should also receive a charging infrastructure. In addition, electric cars are good buyers of locally produced solar power, emphasizes smart-me.

    To finance the mass production of the charging station, smart-me started a swarm financing campaign on Kickstarter on July 8th. The company wants to collect over 50,000 francs.

  • Griesser is the darling of architects

    Griesser is the darling of architects

    Griesser AG received the Architect's Darling award in the sun and weather protection category. As can be seen from a press release by the company from the St.GallenbodenseeArea, it has won the golden phoenix for the second time. In 2018, too, she was victorious in the first prize awarded at the time.

    "The award is confirmation that we are convincing on the market with our products and services," said Urs Neuhauser, CEO of Griesser AG, in the announcement. "We owe the excellent assessment of the architects and planners primarily to our customers, whose projects we have grown to, and to our around 1,300 employees who work daily for the quality of our products and our innovative strength."

    More than 400 architects and planners from Switzerland were interviewed for the award of the Architect's Darling Prize. For the determination of the winners in several categories, the aspects of product selection, price-performance ratio, product quality, innovation and optics or design were decisive, as Griesser informs. The Swiss construction documentation is an information platform for construction products, architecture projects and expert profiles.

  • BaselArea cantons submit a joint economic report

    BaselArea cantons submit a joint economic report

    Successful business needs good framework conditions. This is not only the case at the moment in the three cantons of the BaselArea. “They will continue to develop their strength in the future,” says the media release on the joint report by Basel-Stadt, Basel-Landschaft and the Jura. The report gives an optimistic view of the future of the changes that have also been triggered by the effects of the Corona crisis and lockdown, failure and future redesign of the international division of labor and delivery routes. The regional economy has repeatedly shown in the past that it is able to react to change and develop positively.

    The three cantons have been working closely together on economic policy for years. It was therefore only natural for the governments to prepare a joint economic report. This is now happening for the first time. Basel-Stadt and Basel-Landschaft published the last economic report in 2016.

    On the basis of this analysis, future opportunities and challenges were developed and named. Above all, they want to work together on state innovation funding and location promotion. This means that more can be achieved than with the previous individual activities of each canton.

    The Basel Area Business & Innovation association is at the center of the future coordinated approach. It is already financially supported jointly by the three cantons. With the range of services offered by Basel Area and the Switzerland Innovation Park Basel Area (SIP), the region wants to create an attractive environment for companies, research and innovation in which research and development, service providers and investors find the prerequisites for international communication and marketing.

    The second additional report analyzes the effects of COVID-19 on the business location Basel-Stadt.

  • Electric vehicles are good for Zurich

    Electric vehicles are good for Zurich

    A study commissioned by the canton and the city of Zurich compared the overall eco-balances of various vehicles and drive types. The results show that battery-powered vehicles generally enable a significant reduction in greenhouse gas emissions per kilometer, provided they are fueled with low-CO2 electricity. However, electric vehicles are not yet perfect either. Their manufacture, for example, causes particulate matter emissions outside of Switzerland in particular.

    As part of the study, the Zurich Mobility Environment Index (ZMU) was created, which weights the environmental indicators specifically for Zurich. The results of the ZMU show that the overall environmental pollution in urban areas can be reduced most effectively with battery electric vehicles.

    The results are intended to form a basis for decision-making in the vehicle policy of the city and canton of Zurich. According to the information, the city council wants a consistent conversion of the vehicle fleet to alternative drives. This change is already under way. For example, ERZ Disposal + Recycling Zurich has been using electric delivery vans to empty waste bins on public land since July 2019. In April 2020, ERZ also put the first electrically powered waste collection vehicle into operation.

  • Implenia hands over new campus to ZHAW Gesundheit

    Implenia hands over new campus to ZHAW Gesundheit

    The ten-year project for the conception, development and construction of the new campus for the Department of Health at the Zurich University of Applied Sciences ( ZHAW ) was completed on schedule on July 1st and is now ready for occupancy. Developer and general contractor Implenia has handed the new building over to the owner SISKA Immobilien AG. As the tenant of the house on Katharina-Sulzer-Platz in Winterthur, the ZHAW can now prepare the building, which Implenia has built in accordance with the Minergie standard, with a rental area of around 19,200 square meters for teaching and research.

    The facility will remain closed to the public until the end of July 2020. The "Haus Adeline Favre", named after a midwife from the Val d'Anniviers, will accommodate over 2000 students and around 300 employees from August. The largest Swiss education and research center for occupational and physiotherapy, midwives and nursing will open its doors with an official ceremony on August 28, 2020. An open day will take place on September 26, 2020.

    According to the media release , the building was designed by pool architects from Zurich. The area of the property was completely built over, there are six above and two underground floors with classrooms and practice rooms, employee offices, an outpatient clinic and simulation center as well as a cafeteria. Adrian Wyss, Head of Development Division at Implenia: “At the Adeline Favre house, Implenia successfully brought together its specialists from various disciplines, especially from the Development and Buildings Divisions, and the group's integrated business model was fully implemented. The clear ideas of the tenant Canton of Zurich and the good cooperation between the teams and the authorities also made the project a success. "

  • New building for ASTRA and BFE is ready for occupancy

    New building for ASTRA and BFE is ready for occupancy

    Around 600 employees from ASTRA and BFE will be able to move into the new seven-story building in Ittigen this month. The federal administrative center on the DETEC campus has housed various offices of the Federal Department of Environment, Transport, Energy and Communication (DETEC) since 2006. The new building takes into account the space requirements that have increased since then and brings together previously scattered departments.

    According to a press release , the wood-concrete hybrid construction by the Zurich architects Berrel Berrel Kräutler , which is certified according to the Swiss Sustainable Building Standards (SNBS), relies on the potential available on site. For example, the waste heat from a nearby data center is used to heat the building, and spring water is used for cooling. The project, originally named “Fitzcarraldo” by the architects, uses 100 percent renewable energies and does not cause any CO2 emissions.

    In this modern administration building on the DETEC campus, we can bring together departments that were previously located in two locations in Bern, ”says ASTRA Director Jürg Röthlisberger. "That will simplify the collaboration, improve the team spirit and it can accelerate processes."

    The municipality of Ittigen wants to do everything possible in the future so that the federal government feels at home there, emphasizes municipality president Marco Rupp. In Ittigen they are proud to be able to host most of the DETEC offices.

  • WIPO Limmattal will not take place again until 2021

    WIPO Limmattal will not take place again until 2021

    The Organizing Committee (OC) of the Limmattal Economic Podium has decided to cancel the next event planned for November 2020, according to a media release. The reasons are the "uncertain development of the coronavirus pandemic, the lack of planning security and concern for the health of the participants". The decision was made together with the main sponsors AXA , UBS Switzerland AG , energie360 ° , maneth stiefel AG and the Umwelt Arena Schweiz .

    “We ran through all the scenarios. The decision was anything but easy for us, "OC President Fredi Pahr is quoted in the message. In it, WIPO also informs that the organizers had consulted with the sponsors and partners and that the majority of those questioned were in favor of rejection. “WIPO lives from networking – keeping your distance is difficult. We very much regret the cancellation, but the health of our participants has top priority, ”says Pahr.

    The next WIPO event will therefore take place in November 2021. The exact date should be set in the coming days. The program planned for 2020 and with it the topic of "Limitless" will remain topical in the coming year. “We hope that we can win Federal Councilor Guy Parmelin again for the keynote. The clarifications are in progress ”, informs the WIPO, which was founded and is being carried out by the three patronage associations IHV Industrie- und Handelsverein Dietikon , Schlieren Chamber of Commerce ( WKS ) and the Association for Industry, Services and Trade Spreitenbach ( IDH ).

  • Meyer Burger wants to manufacture solar modules in Glarus

    Meyer Burger wants to manufacture solar modules in Glarus

    The Thun-based system manufacturer Meyer Burger wants to set up a production facility for solar panels in Linthal GL. The planned plant will have a capacity of 400 megawatts and employ over 100 people in three-shift operation, according to a statement from the Association of Swiss Electricity Companies ( VSE ).

    The project is related to the planned realignment of Meyer Burger. The company based in Gwatt BE no longer wants to build and sell machines for the production of panels in the future, but instead wants to get into panel production itself.

    The main argument in favor of locating the plant in Linthal is a solar park project on the Limmernsee in Glarus Süd, 1860 meters above sea level. A floating photovoltaic system with a capacity of 250 megawatts per year is to be installed there. The Limmern Solar Park (SPL) on the storage lake of Kraftwerke Linth-Limmern AG ( KLL , Axpo ) could generate 300 gigawatt hours of electricity and thus cover the needs of 75,000 to 100,000 four-person households.

    There are other advantages that speak in favor of Glarus. In this way, not only is the inexpensive energy supply guaranteed by the Technischen Betriebe Glarus Süd ( tbgs ), but also the building land is available. In addition, the canton of Glarus is ready to set tax incentives. The plant also benefits from the efficient approval process, the rail connection for goods transport and the interesting Swiss market.

  • Implenia is taking part in the construction of the Dreiklang Hospital at Aarau Cantonal Hospital

    Implenia is taking part in the construction of the Dreiklang Hospital at Aarau Cantonal Hospital

    "The working group (ARGE) for the new Dreiklang hospital building for Aarau Cantonal Hospital ( KSA ) at the level of general contractor now consists of BAM Swiss AG / BAM Deutschland AG and Implenia," Implenia informed in a corresponding message . The two partners want to implement the project technically and commercially in equal parts. The consortium commissioned the construction company Marti AG with the master builder work.

    Originally, the Swiss subsidiary BAM Swiss AG of the Dutch Royal BAM Group, together with Marti, acted as a consortium for the new Dreiklang KSA building. The KSA has given its approval to the new composition of the ARGE, Implenia explains in the announcement. According to her, the project is “still on track in terms of time and money”. The planning application should be submitted in a few weeks.

    The construction cost of the project remains unchanged at around 560 million francs including VAT, the announcement said. This amount does not include the costs for medical technology. A corresponding contract for work was concluded with the ARGE in January and remains valid even with its new composition.