about energy

N0 06
>
Growing Appetite for Energy
India in two minds
about energy
>
Local Municipal Energy Supply
Industrial town in the countryside
heralds in the future
>
Pervasive Corporate Culture
How BILLY and Co. set
sustainable standards
>
Interview with Nawal Al-Hosany
Diplomat for renewable energy
in the Middle East
“Sustainability by definition also
means continuity. Now more than ever,
every country around the world
needs to be united in this global issue.”
Nawal Al-Hosany
UNLIMITED NO 06 _ 2013
Request your free subscription at:
www.rehau.com/unlimited
Title picture: Muni Seva ashram
in Zand, Gujarat, India,
13 August 2013, 10:20 am
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Europe’s best
company magazines
REHAU _ Editorial
IMPRINT
uNLIMITeD
NO 06_2013
a magazine from
Rehau aG + Co
Publisher
Rehau aG + Co
Project Manager
Katy hahn
editorial team
Klaus Gollwitzer
Wolfgang Narr
Nils Wagner
editor-in-Chief
Katy hahn
Contributors
Tanja heinlein
Benjamin Kemminer
Markus Kemminer
Photography
Christian Grund
Design concept
art Direction
Simone Fennel
Realization
Gothuey & Partner
Litho
Detail aG
Print
Mayr Miesbach
Gmbh
Published biannually
Print run: 35,000
Dear readers
Over the last few years, the energy market has changed immensely, much more than any other market sector. Renewable
energies already meet a fifth of all energy requirements around
the world today. According to the London-based financial information service, Bloomberg New Energy Finance, global investments for this market will amount to over 630 billion US dollars
by 2030.
Germany’s “Energiewende” (energy transition) is seen as a postulate far beyond the borders of Europe. Countries
that benefited from the oil boom of the past century are now making the decision to carry out research into renewable energies. It would appear that a paradigm shift is occurring.
However, the rapidly growing world population’s appetite for energy must be stilled by sustainable means. Conventional power plants cannot be shut down from one day to the next. Every week, two new coal-fired power plants
begin operation in China. And India finds itself venturing towards gigantic nuclear power plants on the one hand
and alternative energies in rural areas on the other. Our title story shows how decentralized supply systems usher
in the future in these regions. In another article, we reveal how a regional town supply system can serve as a
model for large industrial sites.
In this issue we would like to present you, dear readers, with reliable and efficient solutions that make one thing
clear: renewable energy is unquestionably on the rise; sustainability is the motto – penetrating deep into the corporate culture of global companies. This is true at REHAU, too. At the mention of “energy transition”, most of us
think of solar plants and wind farms, or maybe even alternative mobility concepts, but few are reminded of the
plastics industry. We hope you enjoy discovering how REHAU’s intelligent systems solutions help pave the way to
an age of renewable energy and energy efficiency.
Enjoy the read!
Rainer Schulz, CEO, Rehau Group
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 03
Contents
>
Editorial
News
People
Competence
Statistics
Locations
03
05
21
25
38
39
India’s Trailblazers
Highly innovative
Page 08
Page 16
Location
Interview
Energy pioneers far away
from economic centers.
Pioneer IKEA
Clear statements for man
and the environment.
Page 22
Competence
Ralf Winterling on the future
of the energy transition.
Page 25
The Pune plant, India.
Page 32
Energy concept
for industrial sites.
Nawal Al-Hosany on the
changes in oil-rich countries.
Page 34
REHAU _ News
01
Environmental initiative
1,000,000 trees
Since 2007, the Jane Goodall Institute in Shanghai has been
attracting attention with its “Million Trees Project”.
In an effort to prevent the imminent spread of drylands and curb the rise of China’s greenhouse
gas emissions, the Jane Goodall Institute intends to have planted one million trees in the
desert of Mongolia by 2014. The tree-planting initiative aims to make people aware of how
important and easy it is to counter ever-increasing environmental pollution. The institute,
named after the famous British primatologist and conservationist, is a recognized non-governmental organization and China’s first and only foreign environmental protection organization.
www.rootsandshoots.org
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 05
REHAU _ News
02
Automotive industry
04
Sustainability
Hydrogen –
The Future
Bhutan wants to
produce only organic
food in future.
In 2014, REHAU will build a test centre for
hydrogen pressure tanks at its site in Viechtach.
In doing so, the company is expanding its capacity to test new developments in alternative drive technologies. Developed by REHAU, the
hydrogen pressure tank type class 4 is already approaching its final
test phase before going into production. Its manufacturing concept is,
to date, unique.
www.rehau.com
05
Innovation
03
Politics
Power Ball
Banned
Millions of kids around the world have
no access to electricity. And many
of them are also crazy about football.
Denmark means business: since the beginning
of 2013, new buildings may no longer contain
boilers fuelled by oil or natural gas.
Starting in 2016, the Scandinavian country will
take it even further and ban the renewal of oil
heating systems in existing buildings – at least
for those that can connect to the public district
heating grid or convert to natural gas heaters.
Now imagine a football that generates and stores energy while it’s being kicked around. This brilliant idea
has now become reality. Just 30 minutes of play with
this ball is enough to power an LED lamp – which can
be directly connected to the ball – for three hours. The
high-tech ball, “Soccket”, was developed by Harvard
University students. Anyone can donate a ball to needy
children around the world and in return receive one
themselves.
www.energie-experten.org
www.unchartedplay.com
06 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
REHAU _ News
06
Design
AWARD
08
Savings
In 2011, the light metropolis of Las
Vegas replaced more than 80% of its
street lighting with LED lamps and in
the process reduced its energy consumption by 20 million kilowatt hours
– amounting to savings of 1.7 million
US dollars each year.
REHAU’s surface programs RAUVISIO crystal
and RAUKANTEX visions Duo-Design won the
“red dot award: product design 2013” for
their high product quality. Both products also
received the “honorable mention” award.
www.rehau.com
09
Science
07
Research
Solar paper
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute
of Technology (MIT) have succeeded in printing
solar cells on paper.
The paper can be folded, rolled or creased and provides up to
6,000 hours of solar energy – enough electricity to power a laptop
monitor. In the future, the thin solar panels could serve as
solar wallpaper in living rooms, supplying LED lamps with energy.
www.mit.edu
Going bananas!
A 16-year-old Turkish student created
waves at this year’s Google Science
Fair – an online science competition
for students.
Her idea was to produce plastic from banana peels.
Elif Bilgin has been researching the production of the
biopolymer for two years. One possible field of application is in the insulation of cables. She got the idea from
biopolymers made from the remains of mangoes, whose
starch is already in use in the production of plastics.
www.green.wiwo.de
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 07
300 days of sun per year:
energy for self-supply
REHAU _ Renewable energies
Right in the middle of the green movement
TEXT
Benjamin Kemminer, Markus Kemminer
PHOTOS
Christian Grund
>
India’s appetite for energy is huge. Large-scale nuclear and solar
projects aim to ensure economic growth. In rural areas, attempts are
being made to use renewable energy to strengthen the infrastructure.
here, in front of the entrance to Muni Seva ashram,
about 40 kilometers from Vadodara airport, things look bleak. India
has a waste problem, especially in rural areas. The towering
mountains of rubbish along the roadside are visible to everyone.
across the road looking for food is a donkey, which is not the
norm; the people who live here prefer cows as pets. On the main
road is a small settlement which supplies visitors to the ashram
with products they can’t buy inside. The stores are often simple
corrugated-iron shacks, whose entrances have been transformed
into puddles of mud by the monsoon rains.
Muni Seva Ashram:
a different world, clean and perfect.
Deepak Gadhia with the
ashram’s director, Vikram Patel.
In the ashram, a kind of hindu monastery where people
live long term in order to grow and develop (spiritually), one finds
oneself in quite a different, clean and undamaged world. Catching
one’s eye at the entrance are 100 large parabolic mirrors. The
tarred roads on the grounds are immaculate and swept daily by
hand. The buildings, up to Western standards, are of solid brick
and have round-the-clock electricity, air conditioning and sanitation facilities supplying clean water. The entire area is landscaped;
various species of trees and plants provide shade and in the meadow, exuberant children play.
“We currently generate 30 percent of our energy needs
ourselves; by 2014, we want to reach 100 percent.” Deepak Gadhia is fluent in German. In the early ’80s, the engineer from
Mumbai completed a postgraduate course in energy Consulting
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 09
Entrance to the microcosm
of Muni Seva Ashram.
REHAU _ Renewable energies
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 11
Electricity at last:
energy for families in the village.
Talent development:
students in Muni Seva Ashram.
Green idyll far away
from economic centers.
Learning
objective: Umgang
Lernziel: effizienter
efficient
use of available
resources.
mit vorhandenen
Ressourcen.
12 Rehau Unlimited _ 06/13
REHAU _ Renewable energies
Scenario 2050:
switch to renewable energies worldwide
500 EJ/a*
Geothermics
Nuclear
Solar
Oil & Gas
* Primary energy for electricity, heating, industry and
transport in exajoules (EJ) per year worldwide
2040
2030
2020
2015
2010
Coal
2050
Windpower
Biomass
Hydropower
Sources: IEA energy scenario
(r)evolution 2012 DLR/Greenpeace/EREC
Power generation in India: Energy mix
Gas
18,094 MW
Nuclear
4,780 MW
Oil
1,200 MW
A cycle in which both man and nature chime together.
Renewable
energy*
22,233 MW
Coal
105,437 MW
Hydropower
38,848 MW
* incl. hydroelectric power stations
with capacities up to 25 GW
It all began in 1980 when the founder, anuben Thakkar,
was prompted into action by her guru’s afflatus; trying to create a
kind of Indian model village, she built her house on what is the site
of today’s ashram. “It is estimated that 80,000 Indian villages have
massive energy and water supply problems,” says Gadhia. “Muni
Seva aims to show that there are also decentralized solutions for
regions with poor infrastructure.” The ashram sets the highest
standards in terms of comprehensiveness and sustainability – and
not just by Indian standards, either. energy supply, energy recovery, resource conservation are now at a level which, on the one
hand is adapted to local requirements, but on the other, holds its
own on the international stage. From the solar cooker designed for
individual households to the solar installations for the operation of
schools and hospitals, from the photovoltaic lamp to the comprehensive lighting and ventilation systems, solar-powered water
treatment and wood gasification systems: Muni Seva is literally a
microcosm for renewable energy applications.
as early as 1984, the uchchatar uttar Buniyadi Vidyalaya
School became the proud owner of a solar-powered system, which
supplied energy to the school’s canteen. It was, according to Gadhia, “probably the first solar installation in an Indian school.” The
Source: Ministry of Power India,
gtai, 2012
and Management at the Technical university of Berlin “right in the
middle of the green movement,” as he says himself. Gadhia is on
the board of the Muni Seva Trust, a donation-funded foundation
and the nerve center of the community. In 2011, after the death of
his wife, he sold his solar technology company and dedicated his
life and abilities entirely to the ashram. Gadhia recalls his first
years as a sales rep for a German solar equipment manufacturer in
the mid ’80s. at that time, the Indian energy market was a purely
local affair; only after laborious negotiations with the Indian authorities did the engineer manage to sell his first solar energy system in his home country. Deals in Malaysia and Indonesia followed,
but Gadhia’s ambitions lay elsewhere: his dream was to bring his
know-how to his home country.
idea of sustainability and the principles of renewable energy generation are taught both theoretically and practically in the ashram’s
three schools. In the dormitories and study areas, photovoltaic batteries supply LeD lamps and fans day and night. If the children
forget to switch off the lights when leaving a room, it might happen
that there’s no light and ventilation during night-time hours. “This
way, the children learn to save the existing resources and use
them efficiently in future,” says Gadhia. For the most part, cooking
is powered by solar energy. India has on average 300 days of
sunshine – optimal conditions. however, since the cooking equipment only works with direct sunlight, there is an alternative method: wood gasification. This process requires approximately 70
percent less wood; plus, in contrast to an open fire, the cooker
can be regulated.
The central idea at Muni Seva is to create a cycle in
which both man and nature chime together. here in particular, biogas plants play a major role. If in the past the massive piles of
cow dung created a hygiene problem, today biogas plants provide
an all-in-one solution. The dung is collected, mixed with hay and
filled into tanks where it is turned into clean biogas and used for
cooking, as a fuel for vehicles, to cool the ashram’s in-house infirmary, and to power the generators which produce electricity. The
by-product – organic fertilizer – is used for farming. It’s a twobird-one-stone scenario: plant waste is being converted into energy in tanks and sanitation and waste disposal is being improved.
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 13
REHAU _ Renewable energies
World’s top investors
in renewable
energy in 2012:
China
65,10
U.S.
35,60
Germany
22,80
Other EU-27
16,30
Japan
16,30
Italy
14,70
UK
8,30
India
6,90
South Africa
5,50
Brazil
5,30
Investments in billion US dollars
Source: Bloomberg 2013
Furthermore, the harmful smoke caused by burning wood or oil is
eliminated. The same is true for the generation of light through photovoltaics: it replaces the smoke-intensive kerosene lamps. Muni
Seva is trying to promote these kinds of approaches in the surrounding villages. Interest-free, installment payment plans are offered in
an effort to make these options affordable, since propane and keroIndia swaying between subsidized green energy
and conventional power plants.
sene are ridiculously cheap. Gadhia: “So far, only one in every thousand Indians cooks with electricity, one in two with wood, one in
three with propane gas. The rest use diesel or kerosene.”
The generation of renewable energy in India has a comparatively long history: the establishment of the Ministry of New
and Renewable energy (MNRe) dates back to 1992; nevertheless,
the progress made in the interim has been negligible. In the first
half of 2013, just 12 gigawatts of electricity – from a total annual
demand of around 210 gigawatts – were generated from renewa-
14 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
Biogas supplies
energy for cooking.
ble energy sources. But this does not deter Gadhia from arguing
in favor of renewable energy production. “The construction of
large plants is initially expensive, but will pay itself off within a
few years.” according to Gadhia, solar collectors covering a mere
two percent of the total area would completely meet India’s
current energy needs.
energy has become a political issue in India. The dependence on the international oil market in particular has prodded
the government into providing extensive subsidy measures. Wind
energy is a rapidly growing market, already generating approximately eleven gigawatts per year; photovoltaics produce almost 1
gigawatt. and now the Rajasthan desert is set to play host to the
largest solar power plant in the world. The plant aims to achieve a
peak power of 4,000 megawatts, which is equivalent to three large
nuclear power plants. how much the megaproject will cost is still
unclear, but one thing is certain: The goal is to become the largest
producer of solar energy in the world by 2020 and increase the
country’s share of renewable energies to 22 percent. Following the
German example, green electricity is subsidized through extra
charges per kilowatt hour.
REHAU _ Renewable energies
REHAU’s contribution:
Generating almost 30 percent of its own electricity
needs, Muni Seva Ashram is home to an array of modern
technology. At the heart of this is the biogas plant
connected to a combined heating and power plant.
REHAU delivered the key components of this system, which
is slowly but surely gaining ground in India. Decentralized
plants like this efficiently supply energy where it is needed
the most: to people in rural areas.
RAUBIO – Digester Heating System
Biogas is recovered through the fermentation of organic
matter in an airtight and light-tight digester. The fermentation processes require temperatures between 40 °C and
50 °C. The digester heating system RAUBIO Fix is a special
PE-Xa heating system, which is easy to install and
which guarantees that the digester is heated effectively.
It is highly resistant to acid, temperature and pressure,
and installation is connectionless. The material even prevents microbiological corrosion.
School life:
theory with a foundation in reality.
But the government has set its sights on other energy
avenues, too. Currently, it’s planning to build the largest nuclear
power plant in the world – 800 kilometers south of the ashram. It’s
expected to generate ten gigawatts per year. By 2030, the overall
output of Indian nuclear power plants is projected to increase from
its current level of five gigawatts to an impressive 64. Whether that
will be enough to meet the growing energy needs of the subcontinent remains questionable.
“The problem in India is not that we’re producing too little energy,” says Gadhia. “It’s that it’s not distributed fairly.” emerging economic centers such as Mumbai or Bangalore are well
looked after. although there are also functioning power supply networks out in the country, they remain unaffordable for the rural
population. In Gadhia’s view, only needs-based, renewable energy
generation sources will allow people to help themselves and gain
independence from the state energy market and its fluctuating
prices. But: “The only thing that doesn’t work in India is logic: If you
begin to ask ‘Why?’ then you’ll go crazy,” he says, laughing. <
RAUBIO – Gas condensate collection chamber
The recovered biogas cools down during transportation
from the digester to the combined heating and power
plant. The RAUBIO gas condensate collection chamber
collects the water condensate from the gas stream
and discharges it safely and reliably at the lowest point
of the gas pipe. REHAU is the first company to manufacture an industrial standard solution for condensate
separation in biogas plants.
RAUBIO – Digester Heating
System
RAUBIO – Gas Condensate
Collection Chamber
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 15
Operation Future
TEXT
Katy Hahn
PHOTOS
Christian Grund
>
In Rehau, a 10,000-inhabitant Bavarian town, local industrial
enterprises are ringing in the energy transition in an unusual
way: They’re making a virtue out of necessity. They’re creating
heat and electricity out of waste.
REHAU _ On Site
The town in numbers
Population 9,374
Area 80.34 km²
Population density 117 inhabitants/km²
Country Germany
State Bavaria
Administrative region Upper Franconia
Geographic location 50° 15’ N, 12° 2’ E
Local companies approx. 700 companies
(mainly plastic, ceramic, leather, textile, metal
and wood industry)
is largely based on renewable energy. In essence, the idea is simple: to generate heat and electricity from industrial waste.
as a technology expert, energy Solutions Gmbh specializes in just such projects. In collaboration with the tannery Südleder,
the company is tackling what renowned universities up until recently still thought impossible: the generation of biogas from tannery
Goal: a decentralized energy supply mosaic
based on renewable energy.
High-tech out in the country:
huge digester silos.
Family homes, shops and traditional market life amid
vegetables, spices and pastries: at first glance, the Bavarian town
of Rehau looks pretty run-of-the-mill. Rural idyll instead of big-city
bustle. But unlike most other municipalities in Bavaria, this
10,000-inhabitant town is characterized by strong industrial
growth. Old brick buildings and factory halls recall the town’s historical roots in porcelain and leather processing, which date back to
the 19 th century.
Today, Rehau is home to the largest tannery in Germany,
europe’s largest site for the production of stone tiles and the eponymous global plastics company. Comprising around 700 companies, the town is considered an industry stronghold. With its energy
consumption of 70 million kilowatt hours per year, it consumes
several times more energy than other small towns with comparable
populations. Rehau: run-of-the-mill? anything but.
The same is true for its industrial enterprises: With their
eco-conscious ambition and mid-size company innovative drive,
they are paving the way for the future. The expressed goal is to
successively establish a decentralized energy supply system, which
waste. Located in Rehau, Südleder is a tannery company with a
long-standing history. every year, it produces over five million
square meters of high-quality leather for the automotive and furniture industries. “The production creates waste, which is rich in organic ingredients and which, due to its special composition, had to
be disposed of by expensive means,” said eric Priller, CeO of energy Solutions. “So, the idea was, could energy be generated from
this waste?” In other words: Let’s make a virtue out of necessity.
Construction of a plant to recover fat from glue stock began in 2007. Fat acts as a replacement for fossil fuels. Five years
later, a unique process is setting new standards. By developing a
fermentation method which produces biogas from the organic ingredients of process water and the waste material from the fatrecovery process, energy Solutions was able to cut in half the amount
of tannery waste to be disposed of in 2012. Since then, the amount
of electricity and heat generated has made Südleder virtually energy self-sufficient. With this result, energy Solutions can boast not
only to have refuted published reports, but also to have revolutionized to some extent the entire waste management market. “We’re
proving that it’s technically and chemically possible to produce
biogas from tannery waste,” said eric Priller proudly. his company,
founded in 2010, is firmly establishing itself as a solutions provider
for previously unimaginable challenges.
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 17
Eric Priller, Director of
Energy Solutions, in front of
the Südleder biogas plant.
Traditional market scene:
wednesdays in the
historic town center.
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 19
REHAU _ On Site
REHAU’s contribution:
Defining townscape:
industrial architecture.
The bioenergy plant for the fermentation of industrial byproducts is just one element in the mosaic of Rehau’s decentralized energy supply system. In 2012, energy Solutions built a
400-kilowatt biogas plant in the district of Kühschwitz and this
plant is connected to the municipal power grid. Businesses and
650 households draw their power from here. Via a district heating
network, the plant also supplies other households and businesses
with heat. Located in the village, the company Rehau has been
operating a bio-methane combined heating and power plant since
2012. With a total capacity of almost one megawatt, it covers the
Providing energy for businesses and citizens:
Biogas, bioenergy plant and
combined heating and power plants.
electricity needs of all of the company’s administrative buildings
and more than half of their heat requirements. any electricity produced in excess flows directly into the public network, which has
recently been bolstered by another component: the second
630-kilowatt-hour combined heating and power plant belonging to
the company Südleder.
Together these three plants – the Südleder bioenergy
plant, the biogas power plant and the combined heating and
power plants – already cover over 25 percent of the energy needs
of the town of Rehau today. Note: Wind and solar power are
not part of picture.
“a coverage rate of over a quarter is pretty decent for an
industrial town,” says Priller. he reveals that more development
stages are being targeted in order to further increase the share of
renewable energies of the town’s total energy consumption. No
question: cost-effectiveness, entrepreneurial instinct and comprehensive technical know-how go hand in hand in Rehau. Towards a
clean future, where not only the enterprises participating in the free
energy consortium benefit, but also the town itself and its inhabitants – the homeowner, the baker and the greengrocer. This is
what’s run-of-the-mill in Rehau. <
20 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
By founding Energy Solutions GmbH, REHAU
chose to specialize early in the market and potential
of renewable energies.
In Rehau, Bavaria, the company’s achievements are making
a huge difference. Here, neither wind nor solar power is relied
upon; instead, energy is primarily derived from waste.The processes developed by Energy Solutions are designed for this and
are already catching on around Europe:
“TanERGY”
Unique around the world, this process generates energy from
waste. In Rehau, this waste is from the local tannery,
76 percent of which is turned into energy. Electricity and
heat are recovered through fermentation processes.
“WastERGY”
With this newly developed process, the domestic waste bin
takes center stage in the production of renewable energy.
Municipal bio-waste could in future supply the nutrients for
a fermentation concept that generates energy out of compost mountains.
“NetERGY”
A superordinate, self-learning control system could in future
record and regulate all the parameters of a local self-supply
system of energy derived from bio-waste. The system
monitors the environmental influences – such as wind, sun
and outdoor temperatures – as well as the behavior of
energy producers and consumers.
Specialist in energy generation from waste:
REHAU Energy Solutions GmbH
– Founded: 2010
– Subsidiary of REHAU Group
REHAU _ People
TEXT
Katy Hahn
PHOTO
Christian Grund
“Chemistry is my great passion. even as a child I knew I
wanted to turn my hobby into my profession. even though I’m still
relatively young, I was able to gather a lot of experience during my
studies, my PhD and stays abroad. In my private life, my heart
races for things that can’t be reduced to formulas. For three years
now, I’ve been involved with ‘Israel Connect’, an initiative that
brings young people closer to the land of the Bible. So, not the
typical tourist trail.
We organize meet-up tours funded by donations and get together
with interesting people all over the country. I enjoy planning and
preparing the trips. That’s probably the analyst coming through in
me. Or maybe the philanthrope. I was a tour guide for a group for
the first time in august and I was quite intrigued by the personal
conversations I had with members of the Israeli parliament, with
holocaust survivors and with young soldiers. Israel is home to fascinating personalities: americans who have emigrated to learn
more about their Jewish roots. Or people who have experienced
incredible suffering, but can still receive us young Germans today
with great warmth. I think you only find that in Israel.
Dr Ansgar Niehoff
(31) CHEMIST
I got to know an arab man in Jericho, who at one time in his life,
had been the bodyguard to the Palestinian president, Yasser arafat; today, he provides orphans with a sheltered home. I found this
incredibly moving. Life stories like this are encouraging and need
to be passed onto other nations and future generations. ‘Zeugen
der Zeitzeugen’ (witnesses of contemporary witnesses) is another
project by ‘Israel Connect’ which I would like to get more involved
in – even if it does mean less free time. I’ll still find time for biking
and baking – my hobbies at home – and of course, for my colleagues. There are five of us in our team and we get along really
well. Sometimes, we head off on our bikes just to have a barbecue
some 60 kilometers away. Contrary to what your stereotypical
chemist’s reputation might lead you to believe, we’re rather more
creative and communicative than formula-crazy.”
Lives in Rehau
At REHAU since 2011
Position Chemist, materials predevelopment
REHAU location Rehau
Motto “It is more blessed to give than to receive”
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 21
REHAU _ IKEA
Structure as culture
TEXT
Markus Kemminer
PHOTOS
Christian Grund
>
Visiting the mother of all things sustainable: For more than
three decades now, IKea has been setting standards when it comes
to sustainability – in the truest sense of the word.
For over 25 years Michel Moor has been working at
IKea in Lausanne, Switzerland. and for over 25 years, as an
environmental coordinator and sustainability manager, working
both full- and part-time, he’s been dealing with issues such as
a clean environment, renewable energy, and green economies.
If anyone knows what “sustainability” means at IKea, then it’s
him. It’s all the more surprising then that when asked when
exactly IKea discovered sustainability, he has to think. ”I can tell
you the dates, pas de problème. But actually, everything has
always been there.”
The notion of sustainability at IKea is probably as old as
IKea itself. It probably began when the company’s founder, Ingvar
Kamprad, insisted that no rainforest, no tree from a natural forest
Logistics, design and production –
nothing is left to chance.
shall ever fall victim to one of his tables, chairs, shelves. and since
Kamprad is well known for saying what he thinks and for doing
what he says, to this day, not a single piece of teak can be found
in any IKea product – no matter how trendy teak is today.
IKea is structure as a culture. Wood structure, textile
structure, distribution structure. and above all else: corporate
structure. Nothing is left to chance here, especially not the issue
of sustainability. “Want an example?” Michel Moor, sitting in an
IKea conference room, casts a brief look at the telephone, as he
bends forward from his black IKea chair – KLaPPSTa – towards
an IKea chest of drawers – GaLaNT. “I’ll give you one.”
22 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
“a pallet measures 120 x 80 centimeters. That’s the law
here. every designer, every technician who works for us bears that
in mind. every single component of every new piece of furniture is
checked to see if it fits. So, how many components can we stack
on a pallet? Only when we’ve reached the optimum amount here
do the components go into production.” What that means is there’s
no desk at IKea with a length or width of 1.25 or 1.30 meters. Or
seen from another perspective, a total of 572 VaLLÖ watering cans
can fit on one pallet. When Ingvar Kamprad came up with the idea
of using cardboard instead of wood to make the pallet feet, he
increased the space available by almost five percent. It practically
revolutionized IKea logistics.
at IKea, logistics equals ecology, and as Moor likes to
admit, also economy. “Protecting the environment and reducing
expenditure are two sides of the one coin for us. Think about the
amount of energy and materials we save each year by transporting
flat packs and pallets. That benefits the environment, too. Why not
make the most of both sides?”
a quarter of a century of service to one company – that’s
another form of sustainability. If it wasn’t obvious before, then as
soon as Moor dons his yellow work wear to begin his tour through
IKea’s furniture exhibition in Lausanne, it becomes clear now just
how connected to his employer he feels. as a recruitment specialist,
he knows everyone, greets everyone (IKea staff use informal forms
of address with each other); his pace is similar to a Mexican walker
(lots of space, little time), and he knows not just every single
product, but its histoire too.
“Take our KLIPPaN sofa,” he says. “Designed in the midseventies by the Japanese designer Naboru Nakamura. Robust
REHAU _ IKEA
metal springs that provide real comfort. It fits in almost every living
room. KLIPPaN is still around today. Its components have got
increasingly smaller. So, we’ve been able to save space and simplify
shipping since smaller components mean smaller packages. It all
adds up to more sustainability.”
While IKea designers have been exhorted to efficiently
use recyclable or reusable materials where possible, technicians,
too, have to commit to “keeping it simple.” The issue of sustainability also applies to the Swedish furniture store’s suppliers.
The “IKea Way on Purchasing Products, Materials and Services”,
as known as IWaY, presents an 18-page summary on the “minimum
requirements”, which govern the relationship between the supplier
and the furniture giant. It includes the prohibition of child labor, the
regulation of working hours, compliance requirements, and in
numerous variations, declarations of commitment to sustainability.
Is this checked? “Oh yes,” says Monsieur Moor, looking earnest,
“externally and internally. Frequently. always without warning.”
Standards, measurability in general, play an overriding role at
IKea, and not just when it comes to kitchen units or the height of
chairs. No progress without measurability seems to be the guiding
The most stringent requirements for suppliers worldwide.
principle born out of experience; and it applies to the environment,
too. If the internal environmental goals, such as the annual share
of certified wood of the total wood consumption, are not achieved,
they are not swept under the carpet; instead, they are mercilessly
published – and can easily be viewed online even by the happy
family customers.
One of the more recent developments in terms of
standards is the “Sustainability Product Scorecard”, a scorecard
like in golf only the “green” here means “sustainability”. This SPS
contains a scale from zero to four hundred – the more points the
better. Tested here, among other things, are the cost of materials,
the quality, the reusability and separability of the product, as well as
the entire level of energy efficiency and use of renewable energies
during the production process. To date, the product leader in terms
of sustainability is MaLa, a regular standing easel for kids. MaLa
meets all the criteria to a high degree, it says in the description,
most notably “thanks to its innovative construction”. Yet, despite so
much effort, the reward from Sweden is a mere 253 points. a little
too self-critical? Or just Nordic understatement? It would certainly
appear that even when dealing with the mother of all things
sustainable, there’s still room for improvement. <
24 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
REHAU’s contribution:
As one of IKEA’s partners, REHAU is required to adapt
eco-friendly production methods and develop resourceconserving products.
REHAU supplies plastic solutions for the Swedish furniture
company’s most popular kitchen and home programs. The
use of recycled or secondary materials is already verified
at the product development stage.
RAUVOLET Metallic-line 50
Ready-to-install tambour door systems with 50 mm wide
slats as part of IKEA’s AVSIKT and GALANT series.
Edgeband materials
Edgebands serve as a functional and design-defining finish
on furniture parts. The variety is huge.
RAUVOLET Metallic-line 50
EDGEBAND MATERIALS
Energy self-sufficient by 2020!
REHAU’s geothermal probes are helping IKEA achieve its
2020 goal: to become completely energy self-sufficient
by generating as much energy as is consumed in the
company’s stores and buildings.
REHAU _ Competence 01
“Mr Winterling,
where is this journey taking us?”
TEXT
Katy Hahn
PHOTOS
Christian Grund
Name Ralf Winterling
Age 40 years
Lives in Erlangen
Education Civil Engineer
At REHAU since September 2001
Position Technical Manager Projects
Mr Winterling, infrastructure is a major
issue at REHAU. As Technical Director of the
department, what are your responsibilities?
Well, we deal with the next stages of the energy transition, with the potentials and the
development of the infrastructure on the basis
of renewable energies. The things we’re
driving forward are not mainstream today,
but they could well be in five to ten years.
Like for instance, the geothermal activation
of urban tunnels.
You mean generating heat from tunnels?
What does that entail exactly?
The so-called tunnel thermics is an advancement of geothermal energy: tunnels are surrounded by soil. This energy potential can be
used within the city in subway pipes, for example. Pipes, introduced into the tunnel during its construction, take in the geothermal
energy obtained from the earth and supply
heat to the buildings coupled to them. In
summer, this heat can be passed from the
buildings back to the ground.
Ralf Winterling,
Expert for Infrastructure.
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 25
REHAU _ Competence 01
In 2011, REHAU received the International Tunneling Award
for this. Do we now have any reference projects?
As a trailblazer in the field, we’ve launched some initial pilot
projects; the Jenbach tunnel in Austria is one example. In the
last two years, parts of Stuttgart’s subway network have been
converted so that they are able to supply energy for use in the
surrounding area. We’re currently in contact with Paris Métro,
London Underground, and Copenhagen’s transport authority.
There’s a lot of interest, but the gap between
what is technically possible and what’s actually doable
is still quite wide. Why is that?
These kinds of infrastructural changes don’t happen over
night. It costs money and more importantly, it takes time. The
planning phase for infrastructural changes alone takes up to
ten years. Even if the technology has huge potential, it still has
to prove itself first. Only in the next decade will it become
clear whether our new technologies, including the much-needed expansion of the national grid, will prevail or not.
You’re referring to the issue of burying high voltage lines,
right? I believe REHAU offers special cable ducts for this.
Does this mean overhead power lines will disappear?
Burying the lines in the ground is certainly an alternative to the
pylons, which are controversial among the population. Being
underground, they don’t negatively affect the landscape, and
there’s no electrical radiation. Currently, there are four pilot
routes identified in Germany, which would suggest that this
technology may just get the chance to prove itself.
And your company, too ...
Naturally, we want to be involved in the construction of these
lines; we want to prove how effective and efficient our innovative developments are. The first line is planned for the north
of Germany in 2014. We’re currently consulting with the operator.
Denmark is a step ahead of us on this one ...
There, they’re investing a lot in underground high voltage lines
and existing pylons are gradually being phased out. In general,
the Danes are very anxious to move forward and bring the
infrastructure into line with the rapid growth of renewable
energy. But you have to keep things in perspective: Denmark
is a lot smaller than Germany.
How do things look for the energy giants?
The European Union’s goal is to increase the share of renewable energy to 80 percent of its total energy requirements
by 2050. The Americans will set themselves a similar goal. And
the Chinese, too. It’s a global market worth billions and it will
continue to grow.
26 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
Energy out of the tunnel
1
2
1
Pipes in the concrete structure
extract heat from the soil or dissipate waste heat from buildings
connected to the system.
2
Precast concrete segments with
built-in absorber pipes.
In five to ten years, the share of energy derived from
renewable sources will exceed 30 percent in Germany.
And that figure is set to increase.
The share is growing rapidly, but since wind and solar energy
are dependent on the weather, we see a lot of fluctuation here.
We only have this energy when the sun shines and the wind
blows. That means, the yield varies enormously, sometimes
being well above the requirement level, sometimes well below.
As a result, we need ways to store the excess yield so we can
use it when the yield doesn’t meet the requirement.
Using regulatable power plants?
In part, yes. Regulatable power plants such as the combined
heat and power plants, which generate electricity and in the
process also useful heat, can compensate for these yield differences. But if the share of renewable energy produced exceeds 40 percent, this ability to compensate reaches its limits.
There would have to be lots of available regulatable power
plants, which only operate for a few hundred hours per year.
Economically, this is not viable, so more storage options are
urgently needed. And we already have the technical know-how
to do this today.
You’re heading in the direction of storable fuels
such as hydrogen and geothermics ...
We’ve built seasonal geothermal probe heat storage systems,
which use the soil as a storage medium in Braedstrup, Denmark, in Crailsheim, Germany, and in Drake Landing, Canada.
REHAU _ Competence 01
How does that work?
We bury the probes approximately 50 meters underground.
During the summer, these circulate water that’s solar heated
to 85 °C; the probes then release this heat into the ground.
In winter, they draw the heat back from the soil and feed it
into the grid. Another project is currently running in Sheffield
in the UK. In Patagonia, Argentina, we’re involved in the planning of a hydrogen storage system, which should go into
operation in 2014.
This is the so-called power-to-gas principle ...
Exactly. Electricity from renewable energy can be converted
into hydrogen or a substitute natural gas and then stored in
the natural gas grid or in underground caverns. Starting any
time between 2030 and 2040, solutions like these will be
urgently needed.
Though what’s not yet clear is whether the distribution
of pure hydrogen or a diluted version of methane gas
will gain acceptance ...
It’s difficult to say. As part of the Patagonia-based pilot project
which we’re involved in, we’re providing special multi-layer
pipes which are intended to both transport and store underground hundreds of thousands of cubic meters of hundred
percent hydrogen gas.
Supplying CO2-free energy – REHAU also addresses
this issue in its automotive business. Is hydrogen the
fuel of the future?
Well, profitability is the key issue. But if the reduction of CO2
emissions is further intensified in the automotive industry,
then hydrogen and fuel cell technology is the future. With its
special manufacturing process for hydrogen pressure tanks,
REHAU is prepared for this scenario. The interest shown by car
manufacturers also points in this direction.
REHAU’s contribution:
REHAU is tackling those aspects of the energy
transition that are relevant for the future:
Including the much-needed expansion of the grid, in which
underground installation is becoming increasingly
important. And new long-term storage technologies for the
provision of an efficient regenerative energy system.
RAUGUARD HV – Cable duct
The cable duct RAUGUARD HV enables the safe, smooth
operation of underground high voltage lines without
impacting the environment. The material, adapted for
operating temperatures of up to 90 °C, offers long-term
stability. A high-sliding interior coating allows the smooth
feeding of heavy cable over long routes. Two kilometers
of the special quality cable duct will be used during the
construction of the first pilot line north of Hamburg.
RAU-HY – Hybrid pipe system
The RAU-HY, a metal-polymer hybrid pipe system, ensures
the safe transport of renewable-fuel-derived hydrogen
without conduction losses and without diffusion. It consists
of up to five layers: high-pressure crosslinked polyethylene, adhesion promoters, longitudinally welded aluminum
and a foamed protective layer for direct installation in
the trench.
RAUGUARD HV
RAU-HY
As an energy and infrastructure expert,
how do you get around?
On foot or by bike, if possible. But I also love to be behind
the wheel. <
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 27
REHAU _ Competence 02
Completely renewable
05
03
02
01
07
04
06
06
Whether it’s wind, geothermal, biomass or hydrogen,
REHAU’s wide range of product solutions ensures that
the generation of renewable energy is environmentally
friendly, that its use and distribution are sustainable
and efficient and that it is readily available no matter
how it is stored.
28 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
01 Systems for the generation/
use of biogas
02 District heating networks
of combined heating and power
plants/biogas plants
03 Use of geothermal energy via
tunnel thermics
04 Safe conduction of current
05 Systems for wind turbines
REHAU _ Competence 02
02
11
08
09
10
06 Use of geothermal energy
07 Ground-air heat exchanger
08 Systems for electric mobility
09 Hydrogen pressure tanks in
motor vehicles
10 Safe routing and distribution
of hydrogen
11 Seasonal heat storage tanks
Heat pipe
Electricity line
Hydrogen pipe
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 29
REHAU _ Competence 03
Expertise for climate protection
Learning to use natural resources responsibly
is pivotal for the sustainable development of our
planet. New technologies and pioneering ideas
such as those born at REHAU permit a significant
reduction in energy consumption and an efficient
and environmentally friendly use of renewable energy
– in almost all areas of daily life, worldwide:
College – Fraserburgh, Scotland
The Banff and Buchan College attracts students
from all over the world. Here, in 2011, Scotland’s largest
ground-air heat exchanger system was installed.
Every hour it sucks in 16,000 cubic meters of outside
air and passes it through a special pipe network,
which is buried about 1.5 meters deep in the ground.
Environmentally friendly and energy efficient, the
heat exchange raises the air temperature by up to
9 ºC in winter and cools it by as much as 14 ºC
in summer. A smart alternative to energy-guzzling
coolant-based refrigeration systems.
Radio telescope station – Geraldton, Australia
The giant radio telescope station “ASKAP” (36 antennas,
each with a diameter of 12 meters) in Western Australia
uses renewable energy – among other things, for
cooling. 96 geothermal probes buried 124 meters deep
noiselessly lead the excess heat from the computer
rooms to the surrounding soil. The service life of the
double-U probes is over 100 years and long-term
safe operation is ensured. In addition to the probes,
eight kilometers of RAUGEO PE-Xa connecting lines
and 12 RAUGEO midi manifold chambers were laid to
join the brine circuits.
Project Cooling with geothermal
probes
Product RAUGEO PE-Xa probes
Volume 96 probes, 8,000 meters
of connection lines,
12 manifold chambers
Function Use of geothermal
energy for cooling
Project Climatization of buildings
Product AWADUKT Thermo ground-air heat
exchanger system
Volume 42 x 30 meters of large pipe network
Function Heating and cooling of fresh air, reduction
of the building’s heating and cooling costs; reduction
of CO2 emissions
Fruit-drying plant – Ghana
Dried fruits provide essential vitamins and dietary fiber for a healthy
diet. One of the most modern plants for drying tropical fruits is located
in Ghana, West Africa. Setting standards and operating sustainably
with renewable energy, the Swiss-owned company HPW operates amid
Ghana’s fruit fields. The plant uses a biogas unit fuelled by crop residues like shells, seeds and stalks to generate its own power and heat.
And aiding all of this is the latest technology from REHAU – a digester
heating system and district heating pipes which safely transport the
heat produced.
30 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
Project Biogas plant
Product RAUBIO digester heating
system, RAUTHERMEX district
heating pipes
Volume 1,000 meters RAUBIO
PE-Xa pipes, 150 meters
RAUTHERMEX pipes
Function Pipe systems for biogas
plants, durable and permanently
secure
REHAU _ Competence 03
Bioenergy Village – San Javier, Spain
The bioenergy community of San Javier boasts more
than 30,000 inhabitants and is almost self-sufficient,
drawing its energy from renewable sources. All around
the historic castle, the district heating network
RAUVITHERM ensures a reliable supply of thermal energy
from nearby fermenters. In the confined spaces of
existing buildings and in the leafy palace gardens, the
highly flexible pipe could be installed largely without
the use of machinery and without any major impact on
the unique landscape architecture.
Project District heating supply
Product RAUVITHERM pipe
system, jointing technology
FUSAPEX and REHAU
compression sleeve technology
Volume 250 meters
Function Transport of heat from
the biogas plant to the consumer
Europe’s largest
seasonal geothermal storage –
Braedstrup, Denmark
Tunnel – Jenbach, Austria
Tunnels are massive concrete structures with a large
surface area surrounded by soil. The geothermal
potential here is nothing short of huge. An exchange of
energy via the concrete structure of the tunnel means
that buildings connected to the system can be heated
or cooled. The tunnel itself can also be cooled more
easily – an important consideration, since high temperatures push air-exchange-based systems to the limit.
In the high-speed railway tunnel under the town of
Jenbach – a feeder to the Brenner Base Tunnel in
the Austrian Inn Valley – are absorber pipes stretching
54 meters inside the concrete walls. A heat-transfer
medium (water or water-glycol mixture) circulating in
these pipes increases or decreases the temperature
of the concrete. Warmth is then extracted from the
surrounding soil or the air in the tunnel and used to
heat Jenbach’s building yard, which is hooked up to it.
Project Thermal activation of
tunnel segments
Product RAUWAY flex
absorber pipes
Volume 27 segment rings
with integrated absorber pipes
(7,000 m)
Function Heat exchange with
tunnel air or surrounding soil
At a depth of about 48 meters, 50 geothermal
probes circulate water that has been solar heated
to a temperature of up to 85 °C. The surrounding
soil is heated and a huge reservoir of heat is created.
In winter, this heat is transferred back to the
circulating water. 1,200 homes as well as public
buildings and factories are connected to the
district heating network in Braedstrup. The final
stage of the project will provide a total of 60,000
square feet of solar collectors and 300 to 400
probes to store the heat. The goal is to generate
60 percent of the total annual energy requirements from solar energy.
Project Underground energy storage
Product RAUGEO PE-Xa
Volume 50 geothermal probes
Function Highly resistant, temperature-resistant
geothermal probes for thermal energy storage
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 31
REHAU _ Location India
Pune
In the state of Maharashtra, on the periphery of the
Deccan Plateau, is the Indian city of Pune. With
almost three million inhabitants, the fast-growing
city, also known as the “Queen of the Deccan,”
is an oasis of hustle and bustle in an otherwise
deserted expanse of the Deccan Plateau. Located
on the outskirts of the metropolis is REHAU’s plant,
which has been specializing in the process of extrusion since 2001. Window profiles as well as edgebands, profiles and tambour door panels for the
furniture industry are manufactured, fabricated and
assembled here. And all that in the middle of an
orchard. Since 2007, plant employees, on their own
initiative and for the good of the environment, have
been planting mango, sapodilla, pomegranate and
cherry trees. More than 100 young trees have
taken root on the plant’s 50,000 square meters of
spacious grounds since the initiative began. In
Hinduism, both the fruit and flower of the mango
are of great importance in the worship of gods.
Coordinates:
Plant founded 2001
Employees 200
Plant area 9,740 m²
Production manufacturing of edgebands,
window profiles, rigid profiles for
the appliances industry, fabrication
and installation of tambour door systems
Coordinates 18° 50’ N, 73° 54’ E
Time zone UTC + 5.30
Population 3 million
Language English, Hindi
Information www.rehau.co.in
32 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
REHAU _ Location India
Neu Dehli
Mumbai
Pune
Bangalore
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 33
A strong voice in the Middle East:
Dr Nawal Al-Hosany.
REHAU _ Interview
“There’s a revolution in thinking
occurring in the Emirates”
TEXT
Tanja Heinlein
PHOTOS
Christian Grund
>
Construction of the eco-city, Masdar City, began in abu Dhabi’s
desert in 2008. Though planned for 2016, the mega project
probably won’t be finished until 2025. Dr Nawal al-hosany,
Director of Sustainability, explains why.
>
Dr Al-Hosany, let’s be honest: How can the emirate of
Abu Dhabi with its huge ecological footprint claim to be
a role model for sustainability?
The uae is committed to a diversified energy mix. There are
several environmental, economic or social benefits to broadening
and strengthening our current energy mix to include more sustainable sources of power. While we are at the heart of the hydrocarbon industry, the Middle east and North africa is estimated to hold nearly half of the world’s renewable energy potential. Investing in clean, renewable energy is a natural extension
of the uae’s energy leadership. It provides us an opportunity to
leverage our existing energy expertise and know-how. By planning ahead and broadening the energy mix to include more sustainable sources of power, we can all be better equipped to
meet future energy demand.
>
So, has the world recognized the need for action?
everyone agrees that climate change is a threat that affects all
countries. I’m convinced that through education we can bring
people to act sustainably out of conviction. The world is hungry
for answers to the energy question, also in terms of finite resources. Today, seven billion people live on the planet; by the
middle of the millennium, there’ll be nine billion. Providing everyone with affordable energy hardly seems possible without large
scale renewable sources.
>
40,000 people will live in Masdar City in the future.
What makes it one of the world’s most sustainable cities?
Masdar City is designed to be one of the most sustainable urban
developments in the world. The city combines traditional architecture and design, with modern technologies and applications to
make optimum use of the resources available to us in the desert.
To date, Masdar City is entirely powered by renewable energy.
energy is generated by a ten-megawatt photovoltaic solar farm
located onsite. In terms of living, Masdar City combines passive
and intelligent design. It has natural shade, narrow corridors and
a giant wind tower in the centre that captures prevailing winds,
funnelling cool air through the city. By incorporating green and
recycled materials that reflect heat and sustainable design
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 35
REHAU _ Interview
principles Masdar City residents can enjoy a noticeably cooler
environment – up to twenty degrees cooler than in downtown abu
Dhabi. Our buildings are designed to reduce energy demand by
fifty-six percent and potable water demand by fifty-four percent.
>
But we’ve seen approaches like this before on
the international stage ...
Masdar City was and is certainly a bold statement. Building a
“green city” in the middle of the desert may sound utopian at
first. But the reality is, we’re experiencing the challenges presented by climate change more acutely here than we ever could
in cooler regions. We’re offering the world a chance to view
our approaches as recommendations and to adapt them to their
respective local conditions.
>
So, are countries following your green example?
In april of this year, the “Sheikh Zayed Solar” power plant in
Mauritania which we built, was connected to the grid; it accounts
for ten percent of Mauritania’s grid capacity. With strong solar
and wind energy sources, the country has the potential to draw a
substantial portion of its electricity from renewable sources. To
mention another project: The “Port Victoria Wind Power Project”,
Masdar’s six MW wind farm in the Seychelles, is the country’s
first large-scale renewable energy project. It accounts for more
than eight percent of the grid capacity on the archipelago’s main
island of Mahe, where ninety percent of the residents live. It truly
is a major step toward meeting the Seychelles energy policy,
which sets a target of producing fifteen percent of its energy from
renewable sources by 2030. With such projects, we want to emphasize that renewable energy is an important component for the
successful economic and social development of developing
countries. But we’re setting standards in europe, too: With one
hundred and seventy-five turbines and a capacity of six hundred
and thirty MW, the world’s largest offshore wind farm “London array”
supplies energy to around half a million households!
>
The original completion date for Masdar City was 2016;
now that’s been pushed back to 2025. It would seem that
the mega project can’t be transferred 1:1 from the
drawing board to reality ...
Well, the reality is that we’re building a city – and at the same
time, a treasure trove of experience. Masdar City is living and
learning from local realities. We see how quickly industry is developing here, how much life the city is attracting. The last thing
we want is to finish Masdar City as quickly as possible only to
discover in the end that the implemented technologies are no
longer up to date. Of course, since the start of construction, we
36 Rehau unlimited _ 06/13
have been agile and responsive to changes in the industry or
the current economic scenario, by re-evaluating or scaling back on
projects that would not be viable. But in just seven years, we’ve
managed to filter, enrich, and successfully implement our experience and know-how in projects. Today we’re respected experts
– not just in the Middle east, but worldwide.
>
Living environments that change affect local people
in very real ways. What’s the reaction been?
Convincing people to choose for a sustainable lifestyle is a process that can’t be completed in a day. abu Dhabi is no different
to any other culture in this respect: you need a healthy balance
between the environment and the needs of the population. Only
through clear messages and concrete recommendations, which
also come from abu Dhabi’s leadership, can we bring about change,
can we initiate collective efforts. Masdar City is a flagship
project; it has sparked a rethinking which has reached both industry and parts of society in equal measure. Slowly but surely
we’re integrating sustainability requirements nationwide into our
structures – be it in construction, logistics or in the energy sector. This, of course, has an effect on the other emirates as well.
>
To what extent do you embrace these sustainability
principles in your own private life?
I’m currently building my house and working closely with the
architects and the contractors to incorporate sustainability and
energy efficiency in every phase of the project. I consult in
choosing all my suppliers to ensure that the materials and appliances that are used in my house are sustainable. I hope that
those who visit my house will be inspired and incorporate sustainability into their daily lives.
>
As a leader, you’re held in very high repute internationally.
Have women been accepted into the upper echelons of
energy politics?
Well, it’s always about the respective capabilities. But I personally
find it very refreshing to see how female executives are being
promoted in the uae. Our former president Sheikh Zayed bin
Sultan al Nahyan said in 1971: “Nothing could delight me more
than to see the woman taking up her distinctive position in society. Like men, women deserve the right to occupy high positions
according to their capabilities and qualifications.” I personally feel
this maxim is ingrained in our culture, in all areas of public life,
in politics as well as in business. In international discourse, however, women must step forward more. Climate change affects
women just as much as men. So, they should be equal partners
in dialogue. having said that, I believe women are affected by
REHAU _ Interview
Modern urbanity
in the desert.
climate change in a different way, especially in structurally weak
countries. They make up the majority of the 1.2 billion people
living in absolute poverty worldwide. Yes, perhaps for this reason
women should have a stronger voice in the climate debate.
>
You climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in 2010. And you were one
of the first Arab women to do it. How has this experience
affected you?
It’s made me stronger as a person, changed my outlook on life.
It was about dealing with fears and personal insecurities. Perhaps
these things won’t change your life, but they definitely make you
a better person.
Energy efficient
architecture.
Dr Nawal Al-Hosany
is Masdar’s Director of Sustainability and an internationally acclaimed
expert in her field. In this capacity, she is responsible for the sustainability policies and standards for the eco-city, which is located around
17 km from Abu Dhabi. Al-Hosany grew up in the United Arab Emirates,
where she completed an engineering degree. She earned her doctorate
at the University of Newcastle upon Tyne in England and also attended the prestigious Harvard Business School in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Prior to her work in Masdar City, she was Deputy Director
of Planning for Abu Dhabi’s police force; she was the first woman to
hold this position. In 2008, she was presented with the “Emirates
Businesswoman Award.” Two years later, in 2010, she was one of the
UAE’s first women to climb Kilimanjaro.
>
How do you envision “sustainable living”?
Sustainable living means: having a choice. Be it in our choice of
food, our choice of transportation, when we turn on the fan or
buy a computer. It’s about making a conscious decision. every
single day. <
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REHAU _ Statistics
In the last ten years
80,000* REHAU
geothermal probes
have been installed.
* The thermal energy generated is equivalent to
a saving of 80 million liters of fuel oil per year.
REHAU _ World map
Status 31.08.2013
REHAU locations:
ARGENTINA
Buenos aires
Rosario
AUSTRALIA
adelaide
Brisbane
Melbourne
Perth
Sydney
AUSTRIA
Graz
Guntramsdorf
Linz
Neulengbach
Vienna
AZERBAIJAN
Baku
BELARUS
Minsk
BELGIUM
Brussels
BOSNIA AND
HERZEGOVINA
Sarajevo
BRAZIL
arapongas
Belo horizonte
Caxias do Sul
Mirassol
Recife
São Paulo
BULGARIA
Sofia
CANADA
Baie-D’urfé
Moncton
Montreal
St. John’s
Toronto
Vancouver
Winnipeg
CHILE
Santiago
CHINA
Beijing
Chengdu
Guangzhou
Tsingtao
Shanghai
Shenyang
Taicang
Xian
COLUMBIA
Bogotá
Manizales
CROATIA
Zagreb
CZECH REPUBLIC
Jevíčko
Moravská Třebová
Prague
DENMARK
Copenhagen
ESTONIA
Tallinn
FINLAND
helsinki
FRANCE
agen
Bourges
Lyon
Metz
Morhange
Paris
Poix de Picardie
GEORGIA
Tbilisi
GERMANY
Berlin
Bielefeld
Bochum
Brake
erlangen
Feuchtwangen
Frankfurt
hamburg
hanover
Ingolstadt
Leipzig
Marlesreuth
Mosel
Munich
Nuremberg
Rehau
Stuttgart
Triptis
Velen
Viechtach
Visbek
Wittmund
GREAT BRITAIN
amlwch
Blaenau
Glasgow
London
Manchester
Rowy
Slough
Widnes
GREECE
athens
Thessaloniki
HONG KONG
hong Kong
HUNGARY
Budapest
Györ
INDIA
Bangalore
Mumbai
New Delhi
Pune
INDONESIA
Jakarta
Semarang*
IRELAND
Dublin
ITALY
Milan
Pesaro
Rome
Treviso
NEW ZEALAND
auckland
SERBIA
Belgrade
NORWAY
Oslo
SINGAPORE
Singapore
JAPAN
Tokyo
PERU
Lima
KAZAKHSTAN
almaty
POLAND
Katowice
Poznań
Śrem
Warsaw
SLOVAKIA
Bratislava
Lozorno
KOREA
Seoul
LATVIA
Riga
LITHUANIA
Vilnius
MACEDONIA
Skopje
MEXICO/
CENTRAL AMERICA
Celaya
Guadalajara
Leon
Mexico City
Monterrey
Panama
Querétaro
MOROCCO
Casablanca
NETHERLANDS
Nijkerk
PORTUGAL
Lisbon
Oporto
QATAR
Qatar
ROMANIA
Bacău
Bucarest
Cluj
RUSSIA
Khabarovsk
Krasnodar
Moscow
Nischni Nowgorod
Novosibirsk
Rostov-on-Don
Samara
St. Petersburg
Voronezh
Yekaterinburg
TURKEY
Istanbul
Osmaneli
SOUTH AFRICA
Cape Town
Durban
east London
Fort Jackson
Johannesburg
Port elizabeth
Sebenza
UKRAINE
Dnepropetrowsk
Donezk
Kiev
Lviv
Odessa
Simferopol
UNITED ARAB
EMIRATES
Dubai
SPAIN
Barcelona
Bilbao
Madrid
Tortosa
USA
Cullman
Detroit
Grand Rapids
Leesburg
Los angeles
Minneapolis
Sturgis
SWEDEN
Örebro
VIETNAM
ho Chi Minh City
SWITZERLAND
Bern
Vevey
Zurich
* New locations
TAIWAN
Taipeh
THAILAND
Bangkok
06/13 _ REHAU unlimited 39