21.12.2011

Hamburg as this year’s European Green Capital has involved local enterprises in the challenge of solving ecological problems. True to the tenet that environmental protection can only be effective if everyone joins forces and pulls in the same direction, the Eco-Partnership project has been in operation since 2003. A voluntary alliance of Hamburg businesses and the city-state’s authorities, its goal is to promote sustainable and efficient use of resources in Hamburg.

The NIT is one of the institutions that applied to join the project. The Ministry of Urban Development and Environmental Affairs took a close look at everything, checking technical facilities, evaluating figures, and holding talks with the administration and the facility management. 

The result has been most gratifying. The NIT’s rating is above average and all of the facilities, along with the building, are at the cutting edge of environmental technology. In capital investment the NIT sets store by durability and state-of-the-art technology in its facilities. The NIT building, built in 1998, incorporates heat recovery systems, profession insulation of walls and windows, and temperature-controlled heating. Its office equipment is energy-efficient, too. In the following year, solar heating was installed to provide hot water along with a photovoltaic facility to generate electricity. Care is also taken in office operations to separate waste, to use eco-friendly cleaning agents, and to use recycling-grade paper. 

Dr. Christoph Jermann, CEO NIT: “I am delighted that the NIT, which has always attached great importance to responsibility in its study program, has now received the Eco-Partnership. It certifies that we ‘walk the talk’ on environmental issues. I would also like to take this opportunity to thank our facility managers Frederick Mintah and Friedrich Jungk most cordially.”

Where do we go from here?

In the months ahead the NIT is set to become even more eco-friendly. Plans include time control for the lighting in all bathrooms and energy-saving lighting in the corridors and the two seminar rooms. “We could also run a course on How to Handle Energy Correctly with the students,” NIT facility manager Frederick Mintah says. For further moves an additional discussion with an environmental consultant is planned.