Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) will supply the Philosophikum with heating and cooling in future. In the tender, which also included the construction of the necessary infrastructure, SWG was able to hold its own against strong competition from all over Europe. The extensive project should be completed by the end of 2020.
Justus Liebig University is modernising the Philosophikum. Regardless of whether it is a new or renovated old building, students and lecturers need comfortable conditions for learning and teaching - warmth in the winter months and cooling for air conditioning on hot summer days. Stadtwerke Gießen (SWG) will supply both in future.
Convincing quality and performance
In order to be entrusted with this project, SWG had to prevail against strong competitors. This is because the state of Hesse is not allowed to simply award such extensive contracts. Not even when - as in this case - a long and proven partnership already exists. Consequently, Landesbetrieb Bau und Immobilien Hessen (LBIH) invited tenders for the heating and cooling supply throughout Europe. The requirement was to offer a heating capacity of 8.2 megawatts and a cooling capacity of 5.8 megawatts. "Heating and cooling will be distributed from an energy centre in Philosophikum II "In terms of heating, that's no problem at all. We are laying a short pipeline from Alter Steinbacher Weg to the energy centre on the campus, setting up a distribution network there and supplying the individual buildings with our district heating," explains Thimo Rieger, project manager at SWG. As part of this work, a further feed-in point for district heating is also being created in Rathenaustraße.
Planning the cooling supply proved to be somewhat more complex. This is because the tender specifications limited the primary energy factor for cooling to a maximum of 0.44. This means that SWG may only use a maximum of 0.44 kilowatt hours of fossil fuels to produce one kilowatt hour of cooling. "Here, too, our colleagues quickly found a suitable solution," adds Thimo Rieger.
The planners resorted to classic compression chillers, which now work relatively efficiently. Operated with the right electricity, the required primary energy factor can also be met with these units. "Thanks to our green electricity from Giessen, we are undercutting the required primary energy factor," says Thimo Rieger happily. SWG is also installing an area network for cooling. It connects the energy centre at the edge of the Philosophikum II campus area, where the two machines are located, with the individual buildings via well-insulated pipes.
Cooperation for many years to come
However, setting up the infrastructure is just the beginning. If everything goes according to plan, the necessary work will be completed by the end of 2020. After commissioning, SWG will act as a reliable heating and cooling supplier for 15 years.
The fact that the contract remained in Giessen is quite remarkable. More and more often, large-scale projects that are put out to public tender go to companies that submit dumping bids. These almost inevitably lead to high additional claims. "That's why we are particularly pleased that we were able to prevail with our expertise," summarises Thimo Rieger.