Bayer’s network of experts supporting future building in Germany

A global network of experts for sustainable building under the leadership of Bayer MaterialScience is supporting a building rehabilitation unparalleled pilot project in Germany. The EcoCommercial Building Program (ECB) is helping to modernize an older commercial building in a pioneering demonstration project as part of the conversion of Bottrop in the Ruhr District into a model city for climate protection. Thanks to multiple coordinated measures, the building is expected to later produce more energy than it consumes.

The project under the auspices of the InnovationCity Bottrop initiative is intended to demonstrate just how much is possible with the rehabilitation of existing buildings for greater energy efficiency. The ECB and Bayer MaterialScience are providing the owner of the commercial building in downtown Bottrop with planning services and construction materials at favorable conditions.

The ECB future building was selected in a competition sponsored by InnovationCity that was also open to owners of single and multi-family dwellings receiving assistance with modernization from other companies. The winners in each category were announced Wednesday at a press conference in Bottrop.

The aim of the commercial building modernization, which was built in 1963, is to reduce the energy consumption per comparable area by nearly three quarters. This will be achieved by means of insulating the building envelope, energy-efficient windows and innovative lighting and building technology. Plans also call for using a photovoltaic installation on the roof, geothermal energy and district heating to meet the greatly reduced energy demand in an environmentally friendly manner. Furthermore, the future positive-energy building is expected to generate surplus energy that will be fed into the power grid.

The partner companies from the ECB Program are contributing their respective expertise to the project. Among other things, Bayer MaterialScience is providing polyurethane-based, high-performance insulation solutions. "The key is to intelligently combine the many individual solutions for sustainable building. The ECB Program is also following this approach with the property in Bottrop," explained Dr. Hermann Bach, head of Industrial Marketing & Innovation at Bayer MaterialScience’s Polyurethanes Business Unit.

Bottrop Mayor Bernd Tischler called the competition a lighthouse project for the city. A large proportion of the apartments and homes there have high to very high energy consumption. "These buildings exemplify how energy can be used efficiently and thus CO2 emissions reduced not just here in the Ruhr metropolitan area but in densely populated cities and regions in general," said Tischler.

The global EcoCommercial Building program of Bayer MaterialScience is part of the Bayer Climate Program. It offers decision-makers in the construction industry a unique portfolio of services and material solutions for energy-efficient and cost-effective building. As part of this program, Bayer MaterialScience is working with a network of members from various disciplines to support professionals such as architects, project managers, construction managers, developers and managers of larger companies in the creation of public and commercial buildings that far outstrip previous sustainability standards. The services on offer range from energy efficiency assessments during the planning phase and the use of environmentally friendly materials to the employment of renewable energies.

With 2011 sales of EUR 10.8 billion, Bayer MaterialScience is among the world’s largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction and the sports and leisure industries. At the end of 2011, Bayer MaterialScience had 30 production sites and employed approximately 14,800 people around the globe. Bayer MaterialScience is a Bayer Group company.

Source: Bayer