(Source: Business Wire)
GE (NYSE:GE), and Asklepios Hospital Group today signed an agreement to create their first project in German healthcare to comprehensively address environmental issues. The renovation and expansion of one of the hospitals owned by Asklepios in Hamburg, Germany, known as the "Green Hospital" project, will be their pilot hospital in Europe entirely planned and designed on ecological principles.
The Asklepios Hospital in Hamburg is particularly well-suited for the "Green Hospital" project. The energy efficiency principles will be employed both in the conversion of existing buildings and the construction of new facilities. Finalization of the project is planned for 2013.
"A well-preserved environment is essential for good health. By working with our customers and partners in the conception and design of healthcare facilities, we aim to reduce energy usage, conserve water, generate renewable energy onsite, maintain air quality, reduce waste, increase staff productivity and improve patient satisfaction," GE Chairman and CEO Jeff Immelt said at the signing ceremony of the cooperation agreement, which took place as part of the celebrations to mark the 5-year anniversary of GE's Global Research Center (GRC) in Germany.
Worldwide, the healthcare sector is faced with new challenges when it comes to the planning of hospitals and healthcare institutions. As natural resources dwindle and costs rise, pathways leading to minimize the impact that healthcare delivery has on the environment are in greater demand than ever. This joint project to create an energy efficient hospital addresses these challenges, making it a first in Europe to be planned and designed while considering all interdependencies across a variety of ecological measures. In addition to GE's close cooperation with Asklepios in Germany, the Company is actively engaging customers in other parts of Europe, the Americas, Asia Pacific and the Middle East to deploy environmental concepts at hospitals worldwide.
Achieving the goal to complete this project requires a multi-layered implementation concept. GE will provide the necessary innovative solutions from its different business units and supply Asklepios with unique concepts for building and operating hospitals, optimizing the efficiencies of the design. "One of the benefits of having GE's GRC in Munich is that they will be actively involved with Asklepios in creating and testing new product concepts," Immelt added. GE's technologies to be evaluated are Power-Heat-Cooling co-generation, solar heat and cold, energy efficient medical equipment and lighting as well as systems for water purification reuse.
