Brussels , November, 2011 – Groep Van Roey, a Belgian construction group based in Rijkevorsel and Bayer MaterialScience AG intend to cooperate on sustainable construction. Both companies have signed a memorandum of understanding to join forces in building energy-efficient commercial buildings.

As a part of the agreement, the EcoCommercial Building Program of Bayer MaterialScience and its network members will support Groep Van Roey with a competitive choice of integrated consulting, energy and material solutions.

“The energetic performance and environmental impact of buildings increasingly attract the attention of real estate investors and developers.  Building sustainably offers a win-win situation both protecting the environment and reducing operating costs over the lifecycle of a building,“ says Eddy Cox, CEO of Groep Van Roey.  “Thanks to our group structure and partners, we manage the complete construction project: from development to commissioning - sometimes even operating the facilities ourselves. Van Roey believes in a truly integrated approach - working together is central to our activity and ensures optimal results in terms of quality, budget, schedule and safety.  We value input from our partners and intend to contribute fully to the EcoCommercial Building Program’s holistic approach to increase the sustainability and value of the turn-key buildings provided by van Roey." Cox adds.

The key focus of the cooperation with Groep Van Roey will be on optimizing the energy demand of buildings through building envelope insulation concepts, energy-efficient building technologies, renewable energy applications, and interior solutions to increase user comfort and health at the same time as energy efficiency.

“Commercial buildings require effective solutions for energy efficiency and climate protection”, says Peter Vanacker, member of the Executive Committee of Bayer MaterialScience. “We need to pool our technical expertise,” says Vanacker. “Partnerships are the order of the day. That´s why we have founded the EcoCommercial Building Program, in which we have established a global network of experts for sustainable buildings.”

“The Program offers building decision makers access to leading experts and state-of-the-art solutions – custom-tailored across the entire range of applications from analysis and planning to energy efficient building material and technology suppliers,” says Dr. Thomas Braig, Head of The EcoCommercial Building Program in the Region Europe, Middle East, Africa. “This ultimately means more competition for the best solution, and can thus significantly improve the cost-effectiveness and sustainability of buildings – benefitting the building owner, its tenant and the environment,” Braig adds.

About the EcoCommercial Building Program:
The EcoCommercial Building Program by Bayer MaterialScience enables building decision makers (such as architects, project developers and construction companies, property developers and real estate portfolio managers of large companies and organisations, such as supermarket or fast food chains, hospitals etc.) to implement sustainable building projects. The concept of the Program – a novelty in the construction industry to date – is to provide integrated material, strategy and implementation solutions through a global interdisciplinary network of competent members with local expertise.

About Bayer MaterialScience:
With 2010 sales of EUR 10.2 billion, Bayer MaterialScience is among the world’s largest polymer companies. Business activities are focused on the manufacture of high-tech polymer materials and the development of innovative solutions for products used in many areas of daily life. The main segments served are the automotive, electrical and electronics, construction and the sports and leisure industries. At the end of 2010, Bayer MaterialScience had 30 production sites and employed approximately 14,700 people around the globe. Bayer MaterialScience is a Bayer Group company.

About Groep Van Roey
Groep Van Roey is one of the leading “family owned” construction companies in Belgium with around 512 employees and an annual revenue of 184 million EUR. As a result of a strong belief in an integrated approach and due to the group structure, business activities are focused on DBFMO ( Design, Build, Finance, Maintain and Operate) projects in Belgium and the Netherlands. Groep van Roey  realizes projects in whole or in part with construction as its core business.
Collaborating with Groep van Roey means primarily working with motivated and talented people putting values like quality, sustainability, transparency and respect into practice on a daily basis.

This news release is available for download from the Bayer MaterialScience press server at www.press.bayerbms.com.

Contacts:
Bayer SA-NV
Mrs Carmen Vroonen
Head of Corporate Communications Benelux
Phone: +32 (02) 535.63.10
E-mail: carmen.vroonen@bayer.com

Groep Van Roey:
Mr. Guy Gillijns
Phone: +32 3 340 17 11
E-mail: Guy.Gillijns@groepvanroey.be

Find more information at www.bayermaterialscience.com.
BUX (BUX-BMS-2011-0729)

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