Ecological responsibility

While impact on the environment may be minimised when constructing or operating real estate, it cannot be eliminated completely. While efforts to minimise environmental pollution as a rule lead to higher production costs, they are usually more than only compensated for in the medium to long term owing to lower operating and maintenance expenses and a longer life expect­ancy. When taking into consideration the entire life of a building, it shows that projects that are planned and realised sensitive to the ecology and easy on the environment can be considered profitable in the long term and by all means consistent with economic interests.

At Allreal, development, planning and realisation of all projects are therefore based on the principle of careful use of resources and minimum disruption of the environment. The company thus ensures to consistently comply with all provisions of environmental law, careful use of non-renewable sources of energy and implementation of energy-saving measures during realisation and operation of real estate. As a consequence, projects for third parties, for the sale to third parties and for the company’s own portfolio are balanced both in terms of ecology and the economy.

In this connection, Allreal has made a name for itself as a pioneer and pathbreaker in the development, planning and implementation of ecologically exemplary projects. The company has realised about 100 Minergie buildings since the year 2000, including the zero-heating-energy Eulachhof complex in Winterthur, which was granted the Swiss Solar Award and the Watt d’Or Award. Moreover, Allreal implemented Switzerland’s first building complex – Richti Wallisellen – which complies with the requirements of the 2000-watt society and in Mönch­altorf one of the first residential complexes in Canton of Zurich to comply with the Minergie standard A.

The large project implemented on the Bülachguss site and on an adjacent plot of land in Bülach-Nord consists of 19 new buildings comprising 493 rental apartments and freehold units as well as a historic industrial building for refurbishment. All of the buildings are heated by means of CO₂-free use of groundwater operated by heat pumps and by peak-load coverage based on a decentralised gas-heating system. The heat requirement of the entire site is 36% below the threshold for heat insulation as defined by the Canton of Zurich. All new buildings have been constructed in Minergie-Eco standard and existing buildings in Minergie-Conversion standard. Furthermore, the project implementation complies with the guidelines issued by the Coordination Conference of the Building and Real Estate bodies of public-sector property owners (KBOB) and the joint venture of Private-Professional Property Owners (IPB) for sustainable construction.