IPH has made it its business to integrate the core idea of sustainability into its mission statement – in research, but also in its daily work. In numerous research projects, the scientists are working on recycling plastics, reducing the energy requirements of vehicles, developing lightweight construction concepts, reducing waste in components produced by forming technology and intelligently integrating renewable energies into production – and for example they are also shedding light on questions relating to the environmentally compatible dismantling, repowering and new construction of wind turbines.
ÖKOPROFIT at IPH
In addition, IPH and an interdisciplinary team of employees are committed to making the entire company more sustainable as part of the “ÖKOPROFIT” program. This includes the economical use of resources such as electricity, water and heat, the switch to renewable energies through the institute’s own photovoltaic system and the use of green electricity. The charging point for e-vehicles set up at IPH enables employees and visitors to fill up with green electricity. And thanks to the switch to digital business processes, paper consumption has been significantly reduced. All these measures led to the award as “ÖKOPROFIT company” and the admission to the ÖKOPROFIT Klub in 2020.
The green future at and around IPH
The admission to the ÖKOPROFIT Klub is accompanied by further projects. In the coming months, for example, a solar battery storage system is to be purchased and the company grounds are to be redesigned in a nature-oriented manner. The targeted cultivation of native plants on the green areas around IPH and on the roof is intended to create a near-natural environment for insects and other animals. Insect-friendly LED lighting is intended to both further reduce IPH’s energy requirements and protect the fauna in the vicinity of the company building.
Support for small and medium-sized enterprises
Within the framework of consulting projects, IPH has already supported numerous companies in the past – especially medium-sized companies – in producing more efficiently and thus remaining competitive on the domestic market. The experience gained by IPH employees thanks to ÖKOPROFIT will be incorporated into future projects. IPH supports its customers in numerous production-related issues – for example, in the selection of manufacturing processes, in digitalization and in factory planning – with an eye on both economic efficiency and sustainability.
