Nikolaus

How exactly do you or your project contribute to making STRABAG more sustainable?

The electricity produced by our PV system is 100% sustainable and directly supplies our construction site with green energy every day. This is how we use the hours of sunshine to build our structure. On a good weather day, our construction workers are more motivated, and our cranes and equipment work more sustainably. By measuring electricity consumption using smart meters, we can visualise and evaluate the electricity consumption curve of a large construction site for the first time and draw conclusions from it.

As a result, we have found out that in winter the biggest electricity consumers are not the cranes or construction equipment, but the electric convectors in our containers. This awareness, combined with user behavior, enables us to reduce our consumption and thus save energy and costs.

With several hundred thousand lighting hours of the container lighting and the crane spotlights, the switch to LED lighting fixtures pays off. The energy savings per diffuser luminaire in our container were 45%, and 65% for an LED crane spotlight. These adaptations required little effort and can be easily implemented on any construction site. 

Why is sustainability important to you?

Sustainability and the careful use of resources concern us all. Climate change is now a reality and it is high time we took countermeasures. Each and every one of us can make a contribution. Having grown up in a sustainability-conscious environment, it is natural for me to attach great importance to the topic of sustainability in my professional life as well. The PV system project that has been implemented and the savings and optimisation opportunities that have arisen as a result are a first step that will hopefully be followed by others.

What motivated you to initiate this project?

From the start a PV system on the container roof was uncharted territory for everyone involved in the project, but thanks to the dedicated cooperation and know-how of each individual, we delivered the project in a very short time. This showed on a small scale that we are very well positioned at STRABAG to achieve great things using the synergies between different departments.

What excites you about your job?

I've been fascinated by construction since I was a child. Whenever there was construction work going on, I watched it with interest. Now, as a technician on the construction site, I can not only follow what's going on, but also design or optimise many things in my area of responsibility and thus make my contribution every day with creative ideas for the success of the project.

Describe your time at STRABAG in three words.

Versatile, varied, fascinating.