Water-power protects the environment – and saves money
But it isn’t just the glass roof that saves energy. Thanks to a thermodynamic process developed by the Ecole Polytechnique of Lausanne, Merck Serono is able to use water from Lake Geneva both to cool and heat the building complex. Water from the lake, which has a constant temperature of between 6 and 9°C, is pumped through pipes from a depth of 30 meters into the company’s headquarters.
With the help of a heat exchanger, the difference between the temperature of the water from the lake and the ambient temperature is used to cool the headquarters in summer and to warm it in winter with the support of heat pumps.
Thanks to this system, energy consumption from non-renewable sources has been reduced considerably: “Water from the lake covers around 50 percent of our energy needs. Together with electricity from hydroelectric power stations, 70 percent of our energy comes from renewable energy sources,” says Ms. De Pauw. This saves 1,500 tons of heating oil per year which is equivalent to a reduction in CO2 emissions of 4,800 tons – as much as 30,000 cars would use over a journey measuring 1,000 kilometers.
After the cooling or heating process is completed, the water is routed back into the lake. Its temperature has increased slightly in comparison with its original temperature. “Tests by the Ecole Polytechnique of Lausanne and the University of Geneva have shown that this change has no negative effects on the temperature or the biodiversity of the lake,” explains De Pauw.
And Merck Serono is doing even more for its life cycle assessment. From May 5 to 9 the “green committee” hosted a “Green Week”. “We want to demonstrate how every employee can make their daily life greener,” says de Pauw.
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But it isn’t just the glass roof that saves energy. Thanks to a thermodynamic process developed by the Ecole Polytechnique of Lausanne, Merck Serono is able to use water from Lake Geneva both to cool and heat the building complex. Water from the lake, which has a constant temperature of between 6 and 9°C, is pumped through pipes from a depth of 30 meters into the company’s headquarters.
With the help of a heat exchanger, the difference between the temperature of the water from the lake and the ambient temperature is used to cool the headquarters in summer and to warm it in winter with the support of heat pumps.
Thanks to this system, energy consumption from non-renewable sources has been reduced considerably: “Water from the lake covers around 50 percent of our energy needs. Together with electricity from hydroelectric power stations, 70 percent of our energy comes from renewable energy sources,” says Ms. De Pauw. This saves 1,500 tons of heating oil per year which is equivalent to a reduction in CO2 emissions of 4,800 tons – as much as 30,000 cars would use over a journey measuring 1,000 kilometers.
After the cooling or heating process is completed, the water is routed back into the lake. Its temperature has increased slightly in comparison with its original temperature. “Tests by the Ecole Polytechnique of Lausanne and the University of Geneva have shown that this change has no negative effects on the temperature or the biodiversity of the lake,” explains De Pauw.
“Green Week”: take the stairs instead of the elevator
And Merck Serono is doing even more for its life cycle assessment. From May 5 to 9 the “green committee” hosted a “Green Week”. “We want to demonstrate how every employee can make their daily life greener,” says de Pauw.
The “green committee” has also founded the “Re.Campaign” with the slogan “Merck Serono Geneva Goes Green”. Stickers have been attached to various points of the building complex. The “Re.Born” sticker, for instance, is stuck to elevators to encourage employees to use the stairs instead. The signs are by no means perceived as admonitory finger-wagging by employees. “I think it’s great that my company is committed to the environment,” says Hugo Ordonez, who has worked for Merck Serono since May 2009. “I definitely chose the right company.”
Merck Serono in Geneva
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