Oct 26 2011
Bayer MaterialScience is meeting the challenges of increasing urbanization with cross-industry concepts for sustainable urban development.
The materials producer also offers innovative business models based on interdisciplinary industrial partnerships and pioneering material solutions. The company is now providing an overview of its activities at the UrbanTec trade fair in Cologne, Germany.
Urban spaces in the various regions of the earth are growing at breakneck speed, and the life challenges posed in them are complex and multilayered. Individual experts can no longer manage these challenges. What is needed are overarching approaches in which business, government, politics and society work together on solutions. Bayer MaterialScience is actively driving this process forward.
Breakneck urban growth
“As a leading manufacturer of innovative materials, we see ourselves in a vanguard role when it comes to providing answers to the key questions of urbanization,” says Peter Vanacker, member of the Executive Committee of Bayer MaterialScience. He points out that according to calculations by the United Nations, 70 percent of the world’s population will be living in cities by the middle of the century. Furthermore, urban areas will likely account for nearly three-fourths of global energy consumption in around 20 years.
According to Vanacker, “The growing cities require effective solutions for energy efficiency and climate protection, plus integrated residential and mobility concepts.” Added to these are increasing requirements for the well-being, health and safety of the residents. “We need to pool our technical expertise,” says Vanacker. “Partnerships are the order of the day.”
Global network of experts
Bayer MaterialScience is showing outstanding examples of interdisciplinary concepts at UrbanTec. One of these is the EcoCommercial Building Program, in which the company has established a global network of experts for sustainable building. Existing standards for climate protection, energy consumption, comfort and profitability can be far exceeded simply through the intelligent combination of existing technologies and solutions.
Other Bayer MaterialScience solutions for sustainable urban development include energy-savings lighting concepts on the basis of LED technology and noise protection walls that can be integrated into the urban landscape and combined with renewable energy sources. Innovative materials from Bayer MaterialScience are also contributing to greater well-being, safety and profitability in the form of a novel track superstructure system for rail transportation.
Visit us at Stand A10 in Hall 7 at the Cologne Exhibition Center.