Sonova opens zero-energy company building
Hearing aid manufacturer Sonova has put the new competence center of its subsidiary Phonak into operation in Murten (FR). It is one of the first zero-energy commercial buildings in Switzerland.
According to the company, the "Sonova Wireless Competence Center" of Phonak Communications has been designed for around 180 employees. On the first floor of the two-story new building is a spacious entrance area, from which the canteen with adjacent terrace is also accessible. Also on the first floor are a logistics center as well as laboratories and test chambers for the research and development department. The upper floor provides office space as well as various focus and meeting rooms. In the competence center for wireless technologies, Phonak develops miniaturized communication and hearing protection systems.
According to Sonova, the building, which is CO2-neutral in operation, adapts to the prevailing outdoor climate and requires almost no building services installations such as heating or controlled ventilation. Renewable and reusable building materials were essentially used for the construction, it said. The building's photovoltaic system will produce 260,000 kilowatt hours of energy per year - more electricity than is needed to operate the office building. The excess capacity will be fed into the power grid.
As one of the first zero-energy corporate buildings in Switzerland, the new building also belongs to the first generation of CO2-neutral buildings worldwide, Sonova CEO Arnd Kaldowski said in the company's statement. By the end of 2021, Sonova's entire business operations are to be CO2-neutral.
