Endress+Hauser Canada has erected one of the country’s “greenest” commercial buildings for 20 million euros. The recently opened customer experience and process training centre in Burlington, Ont., is energy-autonomous and CO2 neutral. The 4,400-m2 facility houses a process training centre, a large calibration lab, repair facility, training centre and state-of-the-art office and recreational space for around 120 people.
“The Customer Experience Center is an impressive example of Endress+Hauser’s global strategy of cultivating and managing customer partnerships. This is how we grow – in Canada and worldwide,” said Matthias Altendorf, CEO of the Endress+Hauser Group.
The building also represents the brand values of the Group.
“The new building is designed to express our standards as a company, not only to our customers but the public as a whole,” emphasizes Anthony Varga, managing director.
At the heart of the new building is a process training centre. Customers can use these pilot plant systems to practice hands-on how to operate a wide range of measurement instruments and profit from a long partnership with Rockwell Automation and other manufacturers. This allows customers to simulate conditions similar to their own operating environments.
The new building covers Endress+Hauser’s electricity needs with more than 800 solar modules installed on the roof. These panels can generate around 408,000 kilowatt hours of electricity on an annual basis, exceeding the needs of the building so that electricity can be fed into the grid. A geothermal system draws heat from 50 wells at a depth of 180 m and distributes it across the entire building via 63 heat pumps. The south-facing windows in the upper floor capture sunlight, while the triple-glazed façade prevents heat loss. A 4-m high Ficus tree in the atrium improves the air quality and symbolizes the “green” mindset. Thanks to all of these measures, the building is one of the greenest structures in the country. Endress+Hauser is the first private company to strive for all three certificates from the Canada Green Building Council: Net Zero Energy, Zero Carbon Building Standards and the Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) in Gold.
Source: www.foodincanada.com