More space at the SLF

The SLF with its new building. Photo: Yves Bühler, SLF - The new building will provide the WSL Institute for Snow and Avalanche Research (SLF) with more than 50 additional workspaces. These are urgently needed as the SLF has expanded considerably in recent years, in terms of both the issues it deals with and the number of personnel. The building meets the criteria for Minergie-P-ECO and has achieved the highest (Platinum) level of the Swiss Sustainable Construction Standard (SNBS). WSL Director Beate Jessel is delighted: "To be able to open a new building is a privilege, especially when it's as successful as this one! It gives us much-needed room not only for our employees themselves but also so that they can fully develop their innovative ideas." The previous building was outdated in terms of energy efficiency and provided much less space. The SLF has been running increasingly short of this commodity in recent years. Its researchers' great success in securing projects, and the development by WSL - together with the Canton of Grisons , and with the support of ETH Zurich - of the Climate Change, Extremes and Natural Hazards in Alpine Regions Research Centre ( CERC ), which is integrated into the SLF, means that there are now around 180 people working at the institute (including visiting staff).