immo!nvest – Die Plattform für Standorte und Immobilien

Tag: Pilotprojekt

  • Köniz tests power supply with 100 per cent renewable energy

    Köniz tests power supply with 100 per cent renewable energy

    The Bernese energy supplier BKW is testing new solutions for supplying electricity from renewable energies. According to a press release, a three-year pilot project will provide real-time data on electricity demand and consumption in the Mittelhäusern district of the municipality of Köniz.

    The choice of test area was the result of a feasibility study commissioned by the municipality of Köniz. The test focussed on supplying electricity to the 950 residents of the municipality. In the contiguous supply area, the electricity supply is to be realised using renewable energies. After the test phase, all energy customers will have the opportunity to obtain 100 per cent renewable energy, which is more environmentally friendly and cheaper than before, according to the press release.

    Mittelhäusern could become the first Swiss village to cover its entire energy requirements, i.e. electricity, heat, mobility and processes, from renewable sources, according to BKW. However, a separate follow-up project is planned for the areas of heat and mobility.

    The central aim of the study is to provide BKW Power Grid with data and experience with real-time sensor and actuator technology in a practical experiment. The aim is to ensure a stable and efficient power supply at all times. As a result, the understanding of an intelligent overall electrical system (smart grid) should be improved.

  • Basel tests CO2-free operation of construction sites

    Basel tests CO2-free operation of construction sites

    The Department of Construction and Transport of the Canton of Basel-Stadt is analysing possibilities for the electrification of construction sites on the basis of a pilot test. In cooperation with Lucerne University of Applied Sciences and Arts, the planning office EcoForce GmbH from Schötz LU and partners, the department is working on the basis for the future use of electric construction machinery, according to a joint press release.

    As a first step, an above-ground waste collection point for glass, tinplate, aluminium and batteries in Spalenring will be replaced by an underground one in Hegenheimerstrasse from the end of August until the end of October 2025. If collection containers are located below ground level, they are “more user- and disabled-friendly, cause less noise, blend in better with the cityscape and need to be emptied less frequently thanks to their larger capacity”.

    According to the information provided, the construction of a recycling collection centre with electric construction machinery serves as a test environment. “From the excavator to the wheel loader to the dumper”, the machines run purely electrically. The aim is for the Department of Construction and Transport to gain insights into the technical and organisational requirements for the electrification of future civil engineering projects.

    In order to draw a comparison with conventional construction sites, a second underground recycling collection point at St. Johann-Platz is being built with diesel machines. The CO2 emissions, electricity requirements and noise emissions as well as infrastructure requirements are of interest. Step two involves working with regional construction companies to draw up a concept for the necessary adjustments when converting to electric operation. According to the cantonal climate protection strategy, the operation of construction sites in the canton of Basel-Stadt should be CO2-neutral from 2037.

  • Using living space more efficiently through innovative collaboration

    Using living space more efficiently through innovative collaboration

    (CONNECT) Researchers at OST – Ostschweizer Fachhochschule want to optimize the use of living space through better collaboration. Their project WOGE – Wohnzukunft gestalten supports people who want to downsize their living space with local offers for moving, renovating or finding new flatmates, explains OST in a press release. For WOGE, the OST researchers are working together with the spatial development office Planteam S(plan:team) from Lucerne. The project is also supported by the Swiss Innovation Promotion Agency(Innosuisse) and the Federal Office for Housing.

    WOGE is to be implemented as a pilot project in Aarau, Köniz BE and St.Gallen. The project will kick off next year in the cantonal capital of Aargau. The results from Aarau will then be evaluated and optimized in the Bernese municipalities of Köniz and St.Gallen. Plan:team intends to offer the experience gained from the pilot municipalities to other municipalities as part of its consulting activities.

  • Automated public transport starts in the Furttal valley

    Automated public transport starts in the Furttal valley

    The canton of Zurich and SBB have jointly initiated a pilot project that uses automated vehicles to supplement existing public transport. The focus is on trialling automated mobility solutions designed to improve access to S-Bahn stops in a flexible and cost-effective manner, particularly in rural areas.

    Pilot region Furttal
    The Furttal was selected as a pilot region due to its ideal settlement structure and existing public transport network. The population is to benefit from an expanded mobility offer, which will include minibuses in regular service or on-demand at a later stage. The aim is to gain practical insights for future business models and framework conditions.

    Focus on safety and innovation
    The automated vehicles, which will be tested from spring 2025, are equipped with sensors and are monitored centrally. Safety is the top priority: during the test phase, safety drivers will accompany the vehicles before the controls are fully automated.

    Next steps and funding
    In the coming months, the technology will undergo final calibration to ensure safe operation. The population of the Furttal valley will be actively involved in the project and will be able to gain initial insights at an information event in January. The project is being financed by the Canton of Zurich with CHF 3.8 million and SBB with CHF 5 million over five years. The pilot project is an important step towards innovative and sustainable public transport. With its focus on rural regions and new forms of mobility, it sets standards for the future of public transport in Switzerland.

  • Solar energy on rails: new concept

    Solar energy on rails: new concept

    Sun-Ways wants to transform railway tracks into solar power plants. The idea is to install solar modules between tracks in such a way that they can be easily removed again, for example for track repairs. The Federal Office of Transport has now given the green light for the first pilot project, according to the start-up from Ecublens, which was founded in 2023.

    Sun-Ways will now be able to test its systems on a 100-metre stretch of track near Buttes station from spring 2025. The 48 solar modules will be installed by Scheuchzer, a track builder and manufacturer of track construction systems based in Bussigny VD.

    The installation and connection to the grid will be carried out by Viteos, a provider of renewable energies based in Neuchâtel, and DG Rail, a specialist in railroad power supply. The system will be able to generate up to 16,000 kilowatt hours per year over an area of 100 square meters. The partners in the pilot project are bearing the costs of 585,000 Swiss francs.

    Thanks to a special development from Scheuchzer, the solar systems from Sun-Ways can be installed both manually and automatically on the track bed between the tracks and easily removed again. The Scheuchzer machine can now lay up to 1000 square meters of solar modules per day. In Switzerland alone, with its 5000 kilometers of track systems, Sun-Ways expects a potential of 1 terawatt hour of electricity per year, enough to supply 300,000 households.

    The town of Aigle VD has already approved another plant, which is to be built on private tracks over a length of 1500 kilometers. Sun-Ways is also already in talks with the French state railroads SNCF and with partners in Spain, Romania and South Korea about further pilot projects.

  • Disused borehole in Trüllikon: potential for CO2 storage is being examined

    Disused borehole in Trüllikon: potential for CO2 storage is being examined

    The disused Trüllikon-1 deep borehole is being transferred from Nagra to swisstopo, according to a statement from the Swiss Federal Office of Energy(SFOE). The Federal Office of Topography intends to investigate the potential and challenges of injecting CO2 underground.

    The borehole was drilled by Nagra as part of the search for a suitable repository for radioactive waste. According to a study carried out by swisstopo in 2023 together with the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich and the University of Bern, it is in very good condition and suitable for safely carrying out a CO2 injection test.

    The feed-in test could last from 2025 to 2030 at the latest as part of a pilot project. According to the SFOE, however, it is still unclear whether the test will be carried out. However, swisstopo is already in contact with the municipal council of Trüllikon and the landowner, according to the press release. Furthermore, the potential pilot project does not represent a preliminary decision as to whether CO2 should be stored underground in Switzerland at all.

  • Pilot project measures potential of CO2 in recycled concrete

    Pilot project measures potential of CO2 in recycled concrete

    A pilot project led by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich(ETH) in collaboration with experts from the Swiss Federal Laboratories for Materials Testing and Research (Empa), the ETH Domain’s Water Research Institute(Eawag), the Paul Scherrer Institute(PSI) and the companies Kästli Bau from Rubigen BE and neustark from Bern, as well as 18 other partners, has shown that concrete demolition granulate fumigated with CO2 can save around 15 per cent of the greenhouse gas produced during its manufacture.

    A total of 10 percent of this is achieved by the novel building materials enriched with carbonated concrete granulates. Another 5 to 7 percent can be achieved because the concrete granulate enriched with CO2 makes the cement compounds in recycled concrete stronger than normal concrete. This is the result of complex measurements carried out by Andreas Leemann of Empa’s Concrete & Asphalt Department, among others: “A reactive phase, in other words, which is newly formed in the granulate and produces a higher strength in the recycled concrete. That surprised us,” he is quoted as saying in a media release.

    Further potential was also shown by the CO2 treatment of the so-called recycling water from water, cement and sand, which is produced during the cleaning of concrete vehicles and mixing plants. One kilogram of it could bind the considerable amount of 120 grams of CO2 gas. Life cycle analyses have summed up that the carbonated material can reduce the greenhouse effect by about 13 per cent net compared to concrete with conventional cement and without recycled material. For concrete with recycled material, the effect is still 9 percent.

    The project leaders will present the research results to the public at the so-called closing event. It will take place on 6 December at ETH’s Audi Max.

  • Urbane Dörfer lädt zur Eröffnung nach Melchenbühl ein  

    Urbane Dörfer lädt zur Eröffnung nach Melchenbühl ein  

    Die Genossenschaft Urbane Dörfer mit Sitz in Bern lädt am Samstag, 26. August, ab 17 Uhr zur Eröffnungsfeier des Projekts Melchenbühl nach Muri-Gümligen ein. Dort, direkt bei der Tramhaltestelle Melchenbühl in Gümligen, eröffnet die Genossenschaft einen vielfältigen Begegnungsort. Es ist das zweite Pilotprojekt von Urbane Dörfer neben dem Urbanen Dorf Webergut in Zollikofen BE. Laut einem zu diesem Anlass herausgegebenen Flyer mit Einladung wird am 26. August zunächst ein Kreativort mit Kaffee und Bar, Coworking und Atelier eröffnet. Langfristig sollen 60 Wohneinheiten entstehen.

    Am 1. März 2023 hat Urbane Dörfer das Areal übernommen. Die ungenutzte Wiesenfläche, ein zweistöckiges Werkstatt- und Bürogebäude mit Innenhof und ein Zeithorizont von zwei bis drei Jahren schaffen Raum für Ideen aus der Bevölkerung, das Testen von zukünftigen Nutzungen des Urbanen Dorfes und für einen Begegnungsort, heisst es auf der Internetseite zum Projekt.

    Am neuen Kreativort wird es Benela’s Kaffee und Bar im Erdgeschoss geben. Im Obergeschoss sollen Atelier und Coworking Space einen schöpferischen Nährboden für Kreativschaffende und Selbstständige schaffen. Die Kreativwerkstatt diene als Workshop-Raum für kreative Projekte.

    Zur Zukunft des Pilotprojekts heisst es, langfristig entstehe auf dem Areal ein vielfältiger Wohn-, Arbeits- und Kreativort und eine Basis für gelebte Nachbarschaft. Geplant sind 60 Wohneinheiten, gemeinschaftlich genutzte Flächen und öffentliche Gewerbeflächen. Das partizipative Wohnprojekt sei „eine Keimzelle für ein nachhaltiges urbanes Leben“.

    Dann folgt noch der Hinweis, dass der Anlass bei jedem Wetter stattfinde und eine Anmeldung nicht erforderlich sei.

  • Migros invests single-digit million sum in solar start-up Rayo

    Migros invests single-digit million sum in solar start-up Rayo

    Zurich-based Migros is investing in the Zurich start-up Rayo. To this end, the retail group is pouring capital in the single-digit millions into the start-up via Sparrow Ventures, a Migros subsidiary and growth capital provider, and Migrol AG, also part of the Migros Group, according to a media release.

    Rayo wants to make solar energy more accessible by renting out solar systems in a subscription model. This way, owners have no initial costs. Instead, owners pay “a fixed monthly amount for 20 years for their individual solar solution”. The price includes the photovoltaic system as well as all services from clarifications, planning, installation, maintenance and repairs to insurance and a smart home app.

    There is interest in sustainable, individual solar solutions and energy self-sufficiency. Nevertheless, according to the data, only about one in ten single-family homes in Switzerland has solar panels on the roof. This is low by European standards. According to a media release, Lorenz Lüchinger, CEO of Sparrow Ventures, believes that the reason for the reluctance to install solar panels on one’s own house is the initial costs and the administrative effort.

    It is precisely this gap that Rayo wants to close “and offer a solar solution with which the Swiss population can reduce their electricity costs and at the same time improve their ecological footprint”, Andreas Flütsch, CEO of Migrol, is quoted as saying.

    Rayo subscribers can also order a battery storage system for surplus solar power in addition to their solar package. Rayo also provides charging stations for electric vehicles, using synergies with Migrol and the Migros Group. Migrol, headquartered in Adliswil ZH, operates filling stations, charging stations and car repair shops, among other things.

  • AEW invests in energy grid stability

    AEW invests in energy grid stability

    AEW Energie AG has launched a battery storage project together with Hitachi Energy. The storage facility is scheduled to go into operation on the AEW site in Baden-Dättwil AG in October 2023.

    The pilot project is intended to establish a solid energy supply and provide information about energy systems of the future. This is according to a media release. According to the statement, the companies have joined forces with students from the University of Applied Sciences Northwestern Switzerland (FHNW) in Windisch AG. The operating concept for the battery energy storage system (BESS) was developed as part of a student project. The goal is intelligent battery storage and innovative analysis, software and digital functions to cover peak loads, they say. The storage system is mainly used when demand is particularly high, for example at lunchtime.

    The energy service provider AEW is thus responding to the increasingly decentralised expansion of sustainable energy supply. In the development towards an energy mix, the regeneratively generated electricity must be distributed among photovoltaic systems, heat pumps, storage units and electromobility. At the same time, the storage system is intended to increase the level of knowledge on the operation of battery technologies, grid stability and ageing behaviour.

    Hitachi is providing the battery system. It provides 10 megawatt hours of usable capacity and an output of 5.5 megawatts. With a fully charged battery, the annual energy consumption of two four-person households can be covered or a community of 11,000 inhabitants can be supplied with electricity for about 45 to 60 minutes. The storage unit can be charged in less than two hours.

  • Sensors inform about the use of chairs in public places

    Sensors inform about the use of chairs in public places

    As part of the Smart City Zurich pilot project, the Public Works Department and the City of Zurich ‘s electricity company have tested newly developed sensors from the Center for Project-Based Learning(PBL) at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology Zurich(ETH). The study concludes that the sensors provide “more efficient, reliable, continuous and anonymous” data on the use of chairs in public spaces in the city, according to a media release.

    According to the report, the Civil Engineering Office and the Electricity Works of the City of Zurich(ewz) deployed eight sensors each on Münsterhof and Vulkanplatz in August and September last year. The aim was to find out how passers-by use the chairs on a square at different times of day and in certain weather conditions.

    The sensors collect data on temperature, humidity and noise. The occupancy and location of a chair can also be measured. In the test phase, for example, the sensors showed that the chairs on the unplanted Münsterhof were placed in the shade when the sun was shining. On the Vulkanplatz, which is planted with trees, on the other hand, they remained evenly distributed regardless of the weather conditions. In the mornings and evenings, the seating options on both squares were used to a similar extent. The chairs on Münsterhof were most heavily used in the afternoon, those on Vulkanplatz at midday.

    For the city of Zurich, the sensors can thus contribute to a more demand-oriented planning of public space. This planning is reportedly gaining in importance in view of climate change. The city is now looking into further possible applications.

  • New parcel logistics should relieve cities

    New parcel logistics should relieve cities

    A new pilot project by the Swiss innovation agency Innosuisse is testing an alternative distribution system for parcel shipments in Zurich. It is intended to reduce delivery traffic in cities. A media release from the Zurich University of Applied Sciences ( ZHAW ) quoted the Federal Office for Spatial Development, according to which the volume of parcels will increase by 75 percent by 2040 due to the growing online trade and the freight traffic will increase by 37 percent as a result.

    The ZHAW Institute for Sustainable Development in Winterthur is leading this project. Companies such as H&M , Zalando and Ikea are involved. In addition to the city of Zurich, the project partners are also Swiss Post , DPD and Cargo Sous Terrain . The desired solution provides for the interaction of three distribution centers, so-called hubs. The project also aims to provide cities with assessment criteria that they can use to find suitable locations.

    “Today every truck drives through town once and distributes the goods. With a hub in the city center, from which the fine distribution takes place, you can bundle much better, ”Maike Scherrer from the ZHAW is quoted as saying. A digital backbone based on artificial intelligence is to organize the shipment allocation to different means of transport in such a way that as few transport kilometers as possible are driven. Free transport capacities can be auctioned online. It is important that the distance to the home address is short so that the parcel recipients can walk to the Microhub as much as possible.

  • Smart cities work together

    Smart cities work together

    Basel, Bern, Lugano, Lucerne, St.Gallen, Winterthur and Zurich are already working together on the next national exhibition, " NEXPO – the new Expo ". Now, within this framework, they also want to jointly develop models for future cooperation between intelligent cities, according to a media release from the canton of Basel-Stadt. Its cantonal and urban development in the presidential department is taking the lead in a first pilot project of the initiative.

    With “Smart Inter-City – our common path into the future”, the participants not only want to develop models of cooperation between so-called Smart Cities, but also to implement them. By networking the seven cities, existing synergies are to be used. The project is also open to partners from business, science and the general public.

    The pilot project is to be promoted at the respective innovation locations of the participating cities. In Basel, for example, this includes the Smart City Lab Basel , which was launched by the canton and the SBB.

  • The canton of Zurich and SBB are planning bike and bus projects together

    The canton of Zurich and SBB are planning bike and bus projects together

    The Canton of Zurich wants to work more closely with SBB on upcoming projects. According to a cantonal press release , both partners want to use synergies and save costs. For the canton of Zurich it has been shown that it makes sense to integrate the three cantonal projects to expand the bike and bus network into the major Brüttenertunnel project and to work on these projects together with the SBB.

    "The Brüttenertunnel project offers the opportunity to hand in hand the most extensive bike project to date in the Canton of Zurich and to expand public transport in the Glattal region," said Economics Director Carmen Walker Späh as quoted in the press release. According to the overall traffic concept of the Canton of Zurich, the share of bicycle traffic in the total traffic volume is to be increased continuously to 8 percent by 2030.

    The government council has therefore applied for a property loan of CHF 73.1 million from the cantonal council. The aim is to realize the pilot project of a fast bike route from Zurich-Oerlikon via Wallisellen and Dübendorf to the Zurich Oberland "barrier-free, coherent, safe and comfortable".

    A main bicycle connection from the Im Lampitzäckern quarter in Dietlikon along the SBB route in the direction of Baltenswil, a main bicycle connection, is intended as a feeder to this rapid cycle route. It is also part of this synergy project. With the redesign of Bahnhofstrasse, the cycle route in Dietlikon and Wangen-Brüttisellen is to be continuously expanded to become the main connection and the network gap in the direction of Baltenswil is to be closed.

    Finally, in the course of the construction work on the Brüttener Tunnel, the Baltensilerstrasse underpass in Bassersdorf will be removed. In addition, the canton is planning a bus lane in order to be able to prefer the bus service from Baltenswil to Bassersdorf train station.

    The planning approval process for the Brüttener Tunnel and the three accompanying projects will run from 2023 to 2025. The accompanying projects will be handed over to the public in stages before the tunnel is due to go into operation at the end of 2034 at the earliest.

  • Implenia wins building construction projects in Germany

    Implenia wins building construction projects in Germany

    The construction service provider Implenia has received new building construction contracts in Germany. According to a press release , the order is worth around 108 million francs.

    Implenia will construct three buildings with an area of around 25,000 square meters for Landmarken AG in an industrial park in Bochum-Laer. Construction is scheduled to start this fall.

    As a European pilot project, the new construction of an innovative sports and leisure facility on an industrial wasteland in the Ruhr area "which is being built for the first time in continental Europe" is intended. The 60 systems of this type that already exist worldwide serve as a model. They should offer a mixture of entertainment, sport, music, gastronomy and events. Further systems are to follow, it says in the message. Construction will start in October and handover is planned for February 2022.

    Prior exclusive partnership phases were decisive for the commissioning of both projects. Implenia worked with the customers and their planning teams to develop economic and technical suggestions for optimizing the project. "The result is cost and deadline security for the client as well as for Implenia."

    In addition to these two projects in the Ruhr area, Implenia will build a residential complex in Mannheim-Waldhof and the expanded shell “for a well-known hotel chain” in Munich near the train station.