Otto Group lets offices cool down to 15 degrees and closes entire buildings in winter
Saving energy is mandatory from now on
From September 1st, various measures came into force for six months: Public buildings may only be heated to a maximum of 19 degrees and shop doors should no longer be left open permanently. But that’s not all.
The shipping group announces a large energy saving package for the winter. Whole office buildings should close. Employees should move closer together or work from home. The head of HR emphasizes the new creativity that arises from these conditions.
Die Hamburg Otto Group wants to close large parts of its office buildings in winter to save energy. The company’s own gas-fired combined heat and power plant in the Hamburg headquarters is even supposed to shut down completely. The company announced this on Thursday.
The temperature in several office and work buildings is to be reduced to 15 or six degrees Celsius in winter. “Due to occupational health and safety reasons, no work activities are then allowed there for half a year,” the company said.
At the parcel subsidiary Hermes, for example, three out of four central office buildings in Hamburg are to close. Office work is then concentrated on shared desks in the most energy-efficient building. At the Otto mail order company Witt, the lighting in the rooms is turned down. Electrical appliances such as refrigerators, coffee machines and dishwashers would be taken off the power grid. The group also wants to switch off the hot water and neon signs.
A particularly large number of office spaces at the group headquarters in Hamburg would be allowed to cool down during the winter holidays, i.e. also over Christmas and New Year. “Anyone who has to work during this time is asked to do so on the go – for example from home.
HR manager Petra Scharner-Wolff emphasized in the announcement that new forms of work and the use of cloud software make the changeover easier – and probably bring new creativity: If you move closer together in the offices, new constellations of colleagues would also arise who would now use a common area .
Other companies are also taking action because of feared energy shortages. It is also about using alternative energy sources. handle has announced, for example, that it will once again upgrade the coal boilers at its gas power plant in the main plant in Düsseldorf that were actually intended to be closed. The Hamburg Dax group Beiersdorf procured diesel generators at an early stage and is thus prepared for possible power failures.
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