Sustainable building

New Swiss Post headquarters receives highest sustainability certificate

The MINERGIE^®-compliant building in the WankdorfCity district of Berne is the first office building in Switzerland to receive the DGNB certificate in gold. It meets the most stringent sustainability requirements.

After more than 40 years in the Schönburg building, Swiss Post took up tenancy of the new premises in the WankdorfCity district of Berne in May 2015. The new building optimizes the company's use of office space by bringing six different sites in Berne under one roof. The move was finally completed at the end of March 2016. When fully occupied, the new headquarters houses around 2,000 employees, in a building that sets new standards in terms of sustainability and workplace design. Because the owner Swiss Prime Site, Swiss Post and general contractor Losinger Marazzi not only designed and built it to the MINERGIE^® standard, the building has also been awarded the German Sustainable Building Council's internationally established DGNB quality label in gold.

From hand dryers to artwork

What does this certificate mean specifically? “It is of course important to adhere to very strict requirements,” says Stefan Dürig, Head of Post Real Estate. “We used only recyclable building materials – right down to the works of art in the entrance hall. The intelligent and efficient building also manages energy according to requirements, with daylight-dependent light control, highly efficient LED lighting and geothermal probes for heating and cooling.” The DGNB gold label also has a direct impact on the everyday working lives of employees, with for example no hot water in the toilets, hand dryers instead of paper towels and the consistent use of reusable crockery. Paper-saving “follow-me printing” is part of this too: a badge is required to collect print jobs at the printer – jobs sent by mistake are deleted at the printer, and uncollected orders are not printed.

https://www.post.ch/en/about-us/company/responsibility/energy-efficient-swiss-post-buildings-and-green-it

Location promotes sustainable mobility

The location of the new headquarters next to Wankdorf S-Bahn station offers the ideal conditions for sustainable mobility for commuters: there can hardly be another place in the canton of Berne that's as easy to reach by train, tram and bus. With parking for 450 bicycles, easy to reserve company bikes, the “bike to work” campaign and the nearby PubliBike station, Swiss Post also motivates its employees to choose pedal power where possible. For longer business trips, there are attractive discounts on public transport and environmentally friendly electric and hybrid-powered cars, as well as vehicles from Mobility CarSharing.