Decarbonization - Engineered in Switzerland
ecosystem of the future in Switzerland.
At the start of 2024, GETEC Switzerland took over from Novartis as the operator of Life Science Park Rhine Valley in Stein. The first action has been to change the site’s name. In the future, it will be known as GETEC PARK.STEIN and, together with nearby GETEC PARK.MUTTENZ, will form an overarching ecosystem that will benefit companies in the life sciences and adjacent high-tech fields, such as data centers. The focus is on smart energy and material cycles with the aim of reducing the environmental footprint and optimizing operating costs for all customers at the site.
Since taking over the site, GETEC has continued its development. The long-term focus is on go-green solutions that will help the companies at the site to achieve their sustainability targets. GETEC is providing comprehensive expertise and customized concepts for a greener future.
A solid foundation for sustainable operations
The GETEC PARK.STEIN site was established more than 50 years ago and is a leading center for the life sciences. Stephan Buser, Site Manager of GETEC PARK.STEIN, emphasizes the excellent sustainability standards: “In terms of decarbonization, we are benefiting from the fact that the electricity mix in Switzerland is largely carbon-free.” Most of the site’s heat is already generated by a neighboring wood-fired power plant that uses regionally grown renewable raw materials.
In addition, GETEC operates a clever and very energy-efficient heat pump system that delivers cooling or heating to the individual plants. The possibility of further expanding the system is also being explored.
Attractive working and development environment at GETEC
“We took on 25 employees from the previous operator and have since expanded the team to more than 50 people, due also to insourcing measures. GETEC PARK.STEIN provides good jobs with development opportunities and has expanded our expertise in key areas to ensure sustainable industry operations,” says Stephan Buser. GETEC PARK.STEIN is part of the Sisslerfeld development hub in the canton of Aargau, which is forecast to enjoy considerable growth potential. One key locational advantage is access to a highly qualified regional labor market. GETEC Switzerland is investing substantially in other advantages. For example, it aims to attract further companies in high-tech sectors such as the life sciences and data centers to GETEC PARK.STEIN alongside existing customers.
Green transformation as an opportunity for growth
Industry is looking for ways to systematically preserve resources and reduce greenhouse gas emissions using sustainable, efficient and reliable energy solutions. GETEC Switzerland aims to be an active expert and financial partner in this process, investing in the sustainable expansion of the multiclient site. GETEC PARK.STEIN already provides customers with the ideal environment for achieving their climate-neutral targets using tailored go-green solutions. One concrete measure has involved installing state-of-the-art photovoltaic units on all suitable roof surfaces. “Taken together, the area is equivalent to one-and-a-half soccer pitches. The system is to be completed by the end of 2024 and should produce around 2,100 MWh of electricity each year,” estimates Maria Lampel, Head of Environmental Protection, Safety and Quality at GETEC PARK.STEIN. This is equivalent to the consumption of 600 single-family homes. The energy produced will be used directly on site.
Flexibility and innovation as locational advantages
In addition to these specific projects, GETEC is also continuing to develop the site infrastructure for future new users. Wherever possible, priority is given to renewable energy. “We are not only using existing structures but also thinking ahead,” explains Stephan Buser. “Our investments in the park’s infrastructure will enable us to respond flexibly to the requirements of new customers and to new technologies. In this way, we can ensure that GETEC PARK.STEIN will remain a model of sustainable energy supply in the future as well.” One example: The goal is to be able to use the waste heat from a data center to provide ambient heating in the life science plants. GETEC will provide the technical control, enabling the participating companies to benefit from the added value of this sort of synergy. The switch to greener energy solutions at GETEC PARK.STEIN should also help the region to achieve government emissions targets. Maria Lampel adds: “Here in Northwest Switzerland, one of the world’s largest life science clusters, there is an urgent need for sustainable and viable energy solutions for the future. GETEC delivers these.” The main goal is for the GETEC industrial parks to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions.
A networked ecosystem for optimal efficiency
GETEC PARK.STEIN has a lot of potential for future development. The existing buildings can be modified to suit specific needs, making them more sustainable and cost-effective than greenfield investments. Moreover, existing and new customers will be encouraged to embrace the ecosystem concept. “Each process that we are able to integrate into the energy and material cycles generates added value for the site’s companies based on the recovery of the energy and input materials used. This type of concept is especially attractive for energy- and material-intensive sectors such as the life science industry and data storage because it enables them to achieve both their ESG and profitability targets simultaneously,” explains Stephan Buser. The future of sustainable industry lies in networked ecosystems which extend beyond individual sites. GETEC PARK.STEIN forms an innovative energy and material network with GETEC PARK.MUTTENZ, just a 20-minute journey away, which already has highly developed recycling and energy recovery facilities. GETEC Switzerland is using the geographical proximity and industrial relationship between its investments to create synergies across the parks and sites. This should benefit our customers. The increased networking of energy and material suppliers and their customers could enable GETEC to further optimize the use of resources and reduce energy consumption in the future. Thinking outside the box like this includes the willingness to take new routes in procurement, recycling and reuse and to include additional sources in the material cycles. It embodies the vision of an overarching ecosystem that increases efficiency and reduces the environmental footprint of the participating companies.
GETEC as the enabler for achieving ESG targets
“The GETEC PARK.STEIN team is highly motivated to support our customers in achieving their sustainability targets,” emphasizes Stephan Buser. “We not only perform the planning but can also provide investment in central sustainable infrastructure.” In this way, our customers can concentrate their resources and capital fully on their core processes, while GETEC continues to make the site more sustainable and modern. This partnership enables both parties to consistently pursue their ESG targets.
Interview with
Stephan Buser and
Maria Lampel
What is the strategic significance of the acquisition for GETEC?
Stephan Buser: The acquisition is a key element of our corporate strategy because the park has an excellent infrastructure, a large catchment area for highly qualified employees and enormous development potential – exactly what large companies look for. This has also been confirmed in our discussions with potential new customers. Our long-term goal is to expand the site into a center for sustainable production and innovation in growth areas such as the life sciences and related high-tech sectors. To achieve this, we are seeking to create an industrial ecosystem in Switzerland that fully leverages the locational synergy effects of Stein and Muttenz.
Which concrete plans will be implemented next?
Maria Lampel: In the course of the acquisition, we have been able to hire a number of employees who previously already worked here. They have first-class knowledge of the site and the processes so this is a big win for us. The team has continued to grow further. In addition, we are implementing all of GETEC’s standard tools. Our next step will be to identify optimization potential in the areas of building management, energy supply, engineering, maintenance and environmentally friendly wastewater treatment and waste disposal. If we succeed in fully leveraging this potential, it will benefit our existing tenants and make the park more attractive to new customers.
Maria Lampel
Head of Environmental Protection, Safety and Quality at GETEC PARK.STEIN
Stephan Buser
Site Manager at GETEC PARK.STEIN
GETEC PARK.STEIN
2024Operational acquisition |
3Number of life science companies |
~ 2,000Number of employees curently working at the |
3400,000m²Total surface area of |
1200,000m²Total area available for new |
~ 2.1 MWhElectricity to be generated each year on |
Electricity instead of Fossil Fuels
pump plant in Germany.
From fossil fuels to fully electric within months
Hilchenbach has been an industrial production location for 150 years. To ensure the continuation of this tradition for many decades to come, SMS group is investing in the site’s legacy infrastructure, at the same time heralding a paradigm shift in industrial heating supply. The plant constructor is thus an innovator rather than a laggard. And GETEC is preparing the ground for this.
The future power-to-heat system will integrate a large-scale state-of-the-art heat pump cascade with an electric boiler, making it the largest air-to-water heat pump plant in Germany at the present time. To put this into figures: With a nominal output of 4.3 megawatts, the plant will supply heat to the entire site on the basis of renewable energy only. “To date, no company in this country has operated a plant of this size. This is setting a new benchmark for the industry. The plant is scheduled for completion in April 2025, which is ambitious but feasible thanks to our pain-staking preparatory work,” explains Tim Lendering, the responsible GETEC project manager.
An XXXXXL solution based on proven technology
The planned heat pump cascade operates in two stages. First, environmental energy is extracted from the ambient air by the air-to-water heat pumps and stored temporarily in a source storage tank. In the second stage, water-to-
water heat pumps raise the temperature of this stored energy. At present, a temperature of 95 degrees Celsius is still needed. However, because the heat pumps can only achieve 85 degrees Celsius, the electric boiler acts as a booster to deliver the flow temperature. This is done using a clever hydraulic system which runs the electric boiler in series with the heat pumps. The modernization measures described here are aimed at reducing the flow temperature by ten to 20 degrees Celsius in the future so that the heat pumps alone should then usually be enough. This principle and the heat pump technology are already used in the private real estate sector. However, the system in Hilchenbach will be an XXXXXL version.
Perfect interaction: An electric boiler and artificial intelligence
The additional electric boiler with an output of 4 megawatts will have a special dual role. As necessary, it can be activated to cover peak loads and safeguard the heating supply. It can also be used to ensure national grid stability on the basis of the following principle. If there is a surplus of renewable electricity on the German market, the boiler is activated and takes up large quantities of this energy to heat a stratified storage tank (buffer storage) with a volume of 1,000 cubic meters. “This makes it possible to decouple energy consumption and energy production,” says GETEC’s Tim Lendering. As a result, energy can be taken up when it is less expensive, converted into warm water and stored for later use when needed.
In the future, the process will be fully automated thanks to an AI-based software, which will use the site’s consumption data, intra-day and day-ahead trading prices on the power exchange and weather data to calculate exactly when it is the best time to take up and store energy. “The entire project is a win-win-win constellation. It provides SMS group with a tailored solution that will reduce energy costs and decarbonize the company’s heating supply in the long term. At the same time, the customer will make a stabilizing contribution to the energy transition,” says GETEC Account Manager Daniel Hein, summarizing the project and its impact.
Heralding future measures
However, SMS group will not be stopping with a sustainable heating supply. As part of its energy efficiency and decarbonization strategy, GETEC will soon be taking the next steps. “We are already discussing how to combine the existing system with wind power and photovoltaic plants and battery storage,” says Tim Lendering, outlining the measures for the future.
And he adds: “In the future, there will be an important additional lever on the consumption side. New technologies will make it possible to reduce the necessary system temperatures. At present, these are still quite high but modern plant solutions will cut energy consumption. This will reduce CO2 emissions and the number of kilowatt hours required, at the same time increasing the efficiency of the power-to-heat system.” What an electrifying outlook.
In a collaboration that is setting new standards, SMS group – a world leader in plant construction and mechanical engineering for the steel industry – is depending on GETEC to transition to a fully electric heating supply system for its site in Hilchenbach, Germany. The power-to-heat project marks the launch of a comprehensive energy efficiency and decarbonization strategy by this established company.
The project is funded by the German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs and Climate Action and the European Union’s NextGenerationEU program.
Project Data
Construction time: July 2024 to April 2025
1 millioncubic meters of ambient air will |
6,000metric tons of CO2 emissions will |
95degrees Celsius is the planned |
A Turning Point in
Industrial Heating
Supply
Contacts: Project Manager Tim Lendering and Account Manager Daniel Hein (GETEC)
What is the biggest innovation of the power-to-heat project?
Tim Lendering (TL): It is now standard practice to install heat pumps in private homes. However, the project is groundbreaking in the industrial setting in Germany, especially with its output of just under 4.3 megawatts. SMS group is demonstrating a pioneering spirit and other companies are expected to follow suit soon.
What challenges had to be overcome in this project?
TL: There were a number. The first concerned the technology. In the first phase, the power-to-heat plant has to deliver a high flow temperature of 95 degrees Celsius because of the outdated end user plants. This is still very energy-
intensive. That is why the combination with the electric boiler and buffer storage is so advantageous. At times of low demand, it allows us to take up large amounts of surplus energy from the national power market and store it as thermal energy ready for use when internal demand increases. In the future, the flow temperature is to be reduced by 15 to 20 degrees Celsius. Due to these different modes of operation and system parameters, there was no prototype for the plant, which was why it was necessary to completely reinvent and redesign the engineering of the hydraulics and the control technology.
What were the other challenges?
Daniel Hein (DH): This project is what we call an upgrading project, with the new plant being built inside an old boiler house. This means that the existing plant has to be dismantled while still ensuring the supply of heating throughout the winter until spring 2025. The new plant will then be installed. Planning therefore harbored a great many details for which we found solutions.
In addition, the Hilchenbach site is in a mixed residential and industrial area, which meant that noise protection was a major consideration. In this connection, we came up with a range of solutions for installing the plant. We also had to plan fire and hazard protection systems in detail and obtain local authority approval.
Is that all that’s being done in Hilchenbach?
DH: No, it’s just the beginning. Once the hardware and the plant are commissioned, we will be collecting data to analyze and, in the future, reduce energy consumption. We also aim to optimize energy purchasing with the aid of an AI-based software. The consumption and demand data from Hilchenbach will be compared with data from the power exchange and weather forecasts. The customer is also considering the construction of an additional buffer storage tank.