Sustainable business complex - BREEAM certification

Lely Campus

On 31 January 2014, HRH Queen Máxima opened our new business complex in Maassluis (the Netherlands). Since that day, the production facility for our automated milking systems and our headquarters have been housed under one roof. Sustainability and innovation were also the guiding principles during the development and construction of the complex.

Part of a bigger whole

The head office and factory form part of a bigger whole: the Lely Campus, a centre for creativity and inspiration. It is part of the Master Plan for the redevelopment of the Dijkpolder district in Maassluis. This will make room for other businesses with sustainable activities that fit in with ours. A residential complex with a village feel is also being developed.

A campus is where society, economy and science come together. A campus for innovation.

Most sustainable building

We aimed to achieve the highest possible BREEAM certification. BREEAM assesses the sustainability of a building based on a number of points, such as choice of location, construction and energy use. The design of the terrain and communication about sustainable measures also count towards the certification.

On 20 January 2014, one week before the official opening, BREEAM-NL Outstanding certification became a reality. At that time, the offices and factory together became the most sustainable business complex in Europe. This makes us a front-runner in the area of sustainable construction.

Energy saving and environmental awareness

We devote a lot of effort to measures that contribute to environmental awareness and to reducing energy consumption and CO₂ emissions. Altogether, our efforts deliver energy savings of 343 tonnes of CO₂ per year. This is equal to a forest the size of approximately 32 football pitches. A selection of these sustainable measures are: heat and cold storage in the ground, a bio-oil- fired CHP unit that feeds the (LED) lighting, a grey-water system and the possibility of implementing wind turbines and fully automatic sensors for exterior and interior lighting, taps, doors and blinds.

Construction with no steel supports

The business complex is made up of three elongated office blocks connected to a factory. The construction is primarily made up of prefab construction materials. This offers a range of environmental advantages, such as a safer working environment and a higher-quality end product.

The factory has a truly innovative design. Thanks to smart construction, the factory floor is largely free of supporting columns. This means that the production process on the factory floor can be designed flexibly. In the production facility, we have introduced the principles of LEAN manufacturing. Waste along the production lines is reduced and routes are optimised to, for example, reduce lead times. With the LEAN methodology, lead times for production have fallen by up to 50%.

Apart from being innovative, the factory is also sustainable. This paves the way for allowing for a future change of use or expansion. The factory features a 100 m 2 interior garden. This has the dual benefit of providing a pleasant working environment and, first and foremost, contributing to regulating moisture and oxygen levels appropriately.

Why Lely?

Farmers all over the world make choices about how they set up and run their farms. Every day, we help them make the best choices for themselves and their farms. We do this by providing advice and innovative solutions that contribute to efficient farm management. For sustainable milk and meat production, forage harvesting and energy generation. Present and future.

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