Dutch major bank retrofits offices with Umisol solar and insulating window film and takes the lead on sustainability

More and more companies are finding a solution to the climate challenge in passive cooling. ABN Amro's ambitions go beyond the Paris climate accords: by 2030 the bank wants to make all its offices "Paris Proof. To this end, it enlisted the help of the engineering firm Koppes Bouwkunde and Umisol, producer of solar and insulating window film. "Thanks to our circular approach and unique window application, ABN Amro can achieve its ambitious climate goals. Their carbon footprint will decrease and they will save substantially on their energy bills," stated Francis Denoo, general manager of Umisol.  

Office buildings are energy guzzlers. In the Netherlands, the average energy consumption of an office building is 150 kWh per square meter. According to agreements made at the COP-21 climate conference in Paris, energy consumption should not exceed 50 kWh per square meter. By 2030, ABN AMRO wants to achieve that target. Among other things, they knocked on the door of Koppes Bouwkunde engineers from Heerhugowaard in North Holland for a more sustainable office concept.

Robert Koppes, Managing Director Koppes Bouwkunde: "ABN AMRO is our largest client. We are also the architect behind their recently launched GREENE concept, a sustainable and circular housing concept for customer environments in which personal contact and digital convenience are central, and in which all services of ABN AMRO are offered. The pilot phase is now behind us and we are on the eve of rolling out the concept."

Window film for optimal comfort

ABN AMRO has been on the green path for quite some time. In 2016, it made its branch in Alkmaar energy- and CO2-neutral, thus achieving, partly with the help of Umisol from Amstelveen, the BREEAM-NL-In Use Excellent label. "We installed our innovative window films there, which combine optimal thermal insulation with extremely high light transmission and quasi complete blocking of UV radiation. This reduced the heat load and improved comfort without changing the appearance of the building," states Francis Denoo, general manager of Umisol.

The Alkmaar example, meanwhile, is being used as a blueprint for ABN AMRO's entire office network. "The foils have nothing but advantages. Not only can they be used in new construction and renovation projects, they have low heat absorption, which means they can be applied perfectly to the inside of any type of glass. Thus, they also do not create any inconvenience for personnel. With Koppes Bouwkunde we have now also completed the ABN AMRO office in Amersfoort and Amstelveen. Here, too, a heat-resistant film was used to limit the heat load on a large glass facade of the building."

Easily obtain energy label

With window film, companies can save substantially on their energy bills. This is also confirmed by Koppes Bouwkunde. "In 2017, 12,000 m² of Umisol solar films were installed at the ABN AMRO headquarters in Amsterdam. This saves the bank money per year and significantly reduces CO₂ emissions. The films fit perfectly within the package of sustainability measures and are also a scalable solution for other offices. Moreover, there is a 'right to copy', because we will all have to make it more sustainable," says Robert Koppes convincingly.

"This will also allow companies to achieve the coveted energy label C, which will be a requirement by 2023. Almost half of the offices do not currently meet it. But with our solution, the label is within reach," concludes Francis Denoo of Umisol.