mexico renews itself - ProMéxico

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A Green Industry,
a Compatible
Company
Siemens began its work in Mexico over 118 years ago, when it lit up the
emblematic Paseo de la Reforma in Mexico City. Today, the company
has more than 8,000 employees and is at the forefront of implementing
green technologies for industrial use.
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by gustavo aréchiga
photos courtesy of siemens
The transition towards a carbon-free economy is the greatest
industrial challenge of this century; a challenge that
requires radical changes at every level, from the manufacture
of more efficient individual components, to the
development of comprehensive, environmentally-friendly solutions.
For Barbara Kux, Sustainability Manager and Managing Board
Member of Siemens, this pressing need can be summed up in one
sentence: reinventing the entire industrial infrastructure. The
whole deal? Yes.
“While economic volatility can distract us and the slow negotiations
on climate change can discourage us, this is a goal we cannot
lose sight of. There is a huge incentive to tackle this challenge:
investments in energy efficiency often pay for themselves in the
short term and growth in green markets and renewable energies
proves a promising business case for our clients,” affirms Kux.
In this light, Siemens has integrated renewable energies into its
product portfolio.
Since its foundation, more than 160 years ago, the company’s
philosophy has been to create sustainable value through solutions
and services, which offer clients security and innovation in strategic
areas.
To remain consistent with its strategies, Siemens unveiled a
sustainable corporate building on June 4, 2012 named “Two Patios”,
in the Polanco district of Mexico City.
The company’s new headquarters comprises 17,000 square meters
of office space, required an investment of over 10 million usd
and will be the first building in Mexico to receive a double certification
in Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design (LEED).
With this new building, Siemens seeks to prove that environmental
protection and corporate profitability are two factors
that can go together. As an example, the new offices have
105,000 LED light bulbs, which will allow a reduction of over
30% in electrical energy consumption, with a maximum illumination
of 8 watts per square meter.
While Siemens is putting its house in order to adapt to the
new challenges of the 21st century, its energy department is
undertaking important business ventures. Siemens Energy recently
won a contract to supply a SGT-750 class industrial gas
turbine for Energía MK KF, a subsidiary of the textile manufacturer
Grupo Kaltex.
This high efficiency turbine will be up and running by October
2013 and will generate electricity for all of Grupo Kaltex’s facilities.
The project comprises a 36 MW capacity plant, which will be
located in Altamira, Tamaulipas.
Furthermore, in the last three years Siemens has invested close
to 100 million usd per year to extend its reach throughout Mexico,
intensifying its efforts in three new research and development
centers in Nuevo León and Querétaro.
But the green revolution, which Siemens hopes to lead, goes
way beyond this. “We are very much focused on the industry,
but we also concentrate on private consumers. We offer various
products for high efficiency or low energy consumption. But we
also have solutions for the residential market, for example selling
LED lights together with Osram,” comments Christian Koegl, Vice
President of the company’s energy sector.
In Mexico, Siemens’ green dream is backed by 7,000 workers,
whose job is concentrated in two of the company’s biggest plants
in the country: one for electric motors in Guadalajara, Jalisco and
the other for efficient transformers in Guanajuato.
As well as highly-skilled human talent, Mexico offers Siemens
unique conditions to drive forward its product and green solutions
portfolio. “Mexico has a great advantage: international trade
agreements with over 44 countries and, in addition to its location,
costs here are very competitive. All of this gives us the advantage
of exporting to the US, which is the world’s largest market, Canada
and the rest of the world,” Koegl explains.
In Mexico, Siemens owns 13 production plants, and their business
relations reach the rest of Latin America through their affiliates
in Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Panama and the
Dominican Republic.
Just as the country has been a key player for Siemens over the
last 118 years, all signs show it will continue to be so during this
transition towards a greener industry, which the company is driving
forward. There will be no need to wait for the benefits. In 2011
alone, Siemens’ green portfolio allowed clients to cease emitting
around 317 million tons of CO 2
worldwide. n
www.energy.siemens.com