Living the energy transition – the powercloud IT-Campus enters the construction phase

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  • Innovation campus with combined “smart living” work and living concept
  • Planned sample copy for energy utilities and the housing industry

 

(powercloud, Offenburg, 2021/08/31) The energy transition is possible – this is what powercloud CEO Marco Beicht wants to demonstrate with his construction project in Achern, Baden. The IT entrepreneur’s project has a model character: with its innovation campus, powercloud sets an example for digitally supported sustainability and work-life balance in urban planning.

Above ground, the 20,000-square-meter site is designed to be entirely vehicle-free. The infrastructure runs underground, including parking garages with charging stations for e-cars, e-bikes and e-scooters. The company intends to keep the complex’s residential and work buildings completely CO2-neutral. They offer space for a total of around 350 IT and software experts and their families. In addition, there is a conference hotel, a fitness and health studio, and a star-rated restaurant.

“The project will attract more companies to the region, creating new jobs,” says Marco Beicht. It is intended to offer highly sought-after experts in IT, AI and machine learning the necessary incentive to settle in Baden-Württemberg. “We wanted to find a place with a high quality of life, a place where talented people would enjoy living and working,” emphasizes the powercloud CEO. The new company location would create ideal conditions for a new software and high-tech cluster. The IT campus is intended to serve as a role model for energy utilities and the housing industry alike. For powercloud, this is a milestone on the way to becoming one of the leading German players in the energy transition.

 

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Marco Beicht focuses on radical sustainability

The flagship project is therefore all about implementing sustainable technology. The focus lies on unique benchmarks for CO2 neutrality and energy efficiency. This will involve electricity generation from photovoltaics and biomass, efficient use of intermediate battery storage, climate-friendly building insulation, thermal heat storage and passive building cooling. To ensure efficient use of resources, powercloud analyzes energy consumption and forecasts the consumption behavior of future employees and residents. Smart data use and incentives will be used to enable the targeted alignment of energy storage and consumption in the neighborhood. Beicht sees sustainable approaches for the energy transition in this approach – that is, in the intelligent symbiosis of collective and individual user behavior and the sustainable and data-supported use of resources.

The company’s digital aspirations are also expressed in the entire infrastructure, for example in the form of intelligent locking systems or a parcel station that can be used by all parcel services. The underground relocation of all utilities provides plenty of space for recreation above ground and is a prerequisite for the integration of the site into the surrounding natural environment. When planning the area, much emphasis was placed on preserving nature to the greatest possible extent.

New Work

The powercloud CEO describes his vision for the future of work and life as “smart living”. Employees are provided with a large residential area in a green space thanks to the flowing transition to the park area at the Mühlbach. The adjacent premises, measuring almost 30,000 square meters, are highly attractive in particular for families with children. It feels like a recreational area. The view stretches into the greenery. The 1164 meter high Black Forest mountain Hornisgrinde with its TV tower stands in the distance. The area will be connected with the city center by a bridge, which is still being built.

By bringing living and working closer together, powercloud aims to create a new standard of quality of life. Employees can avoid time-consuming commutes and benefit from the flexibility and family-friendliness that powercloud wants to offer with its new work models. This allows employees to get important things done between work hours and also to work from home. The exchange of international colleagues and joint activities between working hours and on weekends will also be promoted on the new campus. Specially created community zones between the housing complexes encourage people to do so.

 

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Job engine, regional investment

Beicht, the powercloud CEO and native of Achern, is providing an important stimulus in the region with the investment of around 85 million euros. Baden-Württemberg’s Minister of State Development and Housing Nicole Razavi made the following comments at the groundbreaking ceremony in July: “This is quite an accurate image of modern living and of the future. This is the best thing that can happen to us in a city like this, and what is being built here is truly groundbreaking.” Construction is scheduled for completion in 2024. The company will then relocate its main site from Offenburg to Achern.

With the plans for the IT campus, powercloud is continuing its success story as the fastest-growing energy industry billing system – used by more than 200 customers in Germany.

 

 

Area acquired: planned IT Campus Achern combines working and living in an ultra-modern and ecological way

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(powercloud, Achern, 11/20/2020) Another milestone has been reached in the redevelopment of the Illenauwiesen area: Major Klaus Muttach and Marco Beicht as Managing Director with sole power of representation of the purchaser signed the sales contract for the acquisition of an area of 20,000 square meters. Both contracting parties emphasized that, following extensive contract negotiations, a fair result was negotiated for both parties. For example, the purchase price was determined based on a valuation report prepared by the Achern City Council’s expert committee, and further services were agreed as customary for the city in such projects.

The city had acquired the Illenauwiesen area of 52,000 square meters from the German Institute for Federal Real Estate (Bundesanstalt für Immobilienaufgaben) back in 2016. After selling the 3,400 square meters of the riding hall area and now the partial area of 20,000 square meters, the remaining part of the Illenauwiesen remains in the ownership of the city of Achern. The area along Mühlbach creek is to be designed as a public green space based on the recently held urban planning ideas competition. Mühlbach creek is to be included as a publicly accessible natural element, and a footpath and cycle path are to be created along Mühlbach creek, as well as a small bridge over Mühlbach creek with a connection to the city center.

“The creation of an IT campus by Marco Beicht and his group of companies brings jobs to Achern, increases buying power, and will also see 140 apartments built for new arrivals to Achern. Both parties continue to show interest in building a hotel to offer additional attractive accommodation, including for the new Illenau Culture and Conference Center (KTI). A new bakery on the site is also a welcome addition to local amenities. We are particularly pleased that powercloud GmbH, a fast-growing company operating worldwide in an future-oriented industry, has chosen Achern as its headquarters,” says a clearly satisfied Mayor Klaus Muttach.

Combination of working and living is intended to attract highly qualified specialists and executives

Company owner Marco Beicht sees the investment of 85 million euros as a great future opportunity, both for the rapidly growing company that he founded eight years ago and for his home town of Achern. “The working and living concept” is designed to provide two hundred IT and software experts on campus with both a highly attractive working environment and attractive accommodation options very close to company headquarters. This combination of working and living is intended to attract highly qualified specialists and executives to Achern. This is a key factor in continuing the successful history of powercloud GmbH,” says Marco Beicht.

“We expect the project to meet high ecological standards. All essential aspects of sustainable, environmentally-friendly construction are being taken into account. The construction area is to be developed in an almost CO2-neutral manner and the two underground parking garages will accommodate about 365 car parking spaces and 250 bicycle parking spaces, including e-charging stations, while the campus will be car-free above ground,” assures Marco Beicht.

Expanding the infrastructure offering

Mayor Klaus Muttach sees the sale of the lower part of the Illenauwiesen area to the investor as an important development boost for the town. “We plan to invest some of the proceeds of the sale in building a public, close-to-nature park along Mühlbach creek and in building affordable apartments. The infrastructure follow-up costs levy of over 500,000 euros, determined under the customary rules, will be a financing component towards establishing a two-group kindergarten on the grounds of the Antoniusschule Oberachern school and a six-group kindergarten on the grounds of the glassworks. The increase in buying power resulting from additional jobs and the gradually growing population is strengthening retail trade and expanding the infrastructure offering, for example the availability of childcare places,” says Muttach.

In a joint press release accompanying the notarial certification of the sales contract, Klaus Muttach and Marco Beicht were confident that this milestone will be followed by the successful completion of the next step in the realization of the project.


85 millions for IT campus in Achern

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An IT campus is being built on the Illenauwiesen in Achern. The “powercloud”, which has been located in Mösbach until now, wants to build the company headquarters for around 200 employees, 140 apartments and a hotel here. The project has a volume of 85 million euros.

Fundamental decision in the municipal council

The majority of the municipal council approved these plans on Monday evening and stopped the “two-phase investor and architect selection process” that had already been started for the development of the inner-city area.

Energy service providers as customers

Behind the project is the Mösbach entrepreneur Marco Beicht, who is stirring up the energy industry with his company “powercloud”, founded in 2012. So successful that – as reported – he won the support of the American financial investor “General Atlantic” in the form of a triple-digit million euro sum. In Germany, “General Atlantic” has a stake in “Flixbus”, other well-known companies in the portfolio are “Airbnb” (marketplace for booking and renting accommodation) or Uber (online agent for passenger transportation). General Atlantic” holds a 45 percent share in the powercloud.

EnBW acquired as a customer

Beicht’s company “powercloud” implements digital services for energy providers, among other things. Only recently, he won Karlsruhe-based EnBW as a customer – at the expense of the SAP software group.

Apartments for employees

On the Illenauwiesen meadows, Beicht is planning its new company headquarters, as well as a design-budget hotel with 90 rooms (“three stars plus”) for freelancers, external partners, customers and other guests of the company, and 140 apartments, which will primarily be available to employees. The planning is completed by an underground car park with about 450 car parking spaces and about 300 bicycle stands. The project is based on the realization that software experts are rare and that, in the end, they can only be attracted to Achern by offering an attractive range of apartments.

Start of construction if possible next year

If Marco Beicht has his way, construction is to begin as early as next year. The city wants to create the legal conditions for construction by the end of 2019.