The removal of residual ammunition from the former depot in Mitholz, Bern, is expected to cost the federal government CHF 2.59 billion. The Federal Council has now asked parliament to release the sum and is thus sticking to the goal of clearing the former ammunition depot in Mitholz. The challenges posed by the ammunition residues are not to be left to future generations.

Some protective measures are unavoidable

The purpose of the clearance project is to eliminate the risk of major incidents caused by the explosion of the large quantities of residual ammunition from the Second World War. A comprehensive clearance of the ammunition residues in the entire area affected by the explosion in 1947 is planned. In addition, a protective tunnel for the national road is to be built and measures taken to protect the infrastructure from natural hazards such as avalanches, floods, debris flows or rockfalls.

However, the residents in the safety perimeter will have to move away before the clearance work begins, and protective measures will have to be taken for the transport modes and for the roads and railroads. For one part of the population, this will already be the case from 2025. They will have to move out of the village for ten years. After the clearance, Mitholz can be resettled and the site could be used again.

Source: Federal Council/Editorial Office

In her first Home and Leisure Safety Barometer the Swiss Council for Accident Prevention (BFU) highlights various accident black spots in the leisure sector. Most accidents occur at home every year. Ironically, more serious accidents occur in the bathroom, for example, than in cars. Falls account for the majority of serious injuries and fatalities in the home and leisure sector (81 percent). Older people in particular are usually seriously or fatally injured in falls.

Falls down stairs could be avoided

The BFU's new safety barometer also provides information about the population's protection and risk behavior. For example, the risk of falling from a staircase can be reduced by always using the stair handrail. However, the study shows that 18 percent of 64- to 85-year-olds never make use of the handrail. Among the younger population (17- 25-year-olds), the figure is 27 percent.

However, the BFU also advises slightly older people to do regular strength and balance training. The ideal would be to train strength and balance three times a week for 30 minutes, especially from the age of 50, ideally under professional guidance. Although about half of older adults regularly practice such exercises, only a few also pay attention to endurance and regularity.

Source: AAIB/editorial office

In a current expert reportcommissioned by the Swiss Science Council SWR, case studies such as the financial crisis, the Fukushima accident and the Covid 19 pandemic are examined. Due to the versatility of possible crisis scenarios, the authors conclude that there is no typical advisory mechanism that is suitable for all types of crises. Rather, the instruments need to be improved or further developed. Politics and science, they argue, should rather know about each other and strengthen their different roles in times of crisis.

The role of science during times of crisis

Universities, for example, should be encouraged to see policy advice as part of their mission for the benefit of society. However, science should also be enabled to provide better advice to policymakers. More knowledge about threats and risks is to be generated in a short time, so that the findings can be systematically incorporated into policy-making. The role of science should therefore be demanded more strongly in politics, Sabine Süsstrunk, president of the Swiss Science Council SWR, was quoted as saying in a press release.

Extra-parliamentary commissions dealing with crises must be known and, if necessary, ensure appropriate professional cooperation. In the event of a crisis, they should also act in an advisory capacity on their own initiative. In addition, for complex situations with a special need for advice, a scientific task force is required to support the authorities. This task force should have an appropriately broad range of topics.

Source: Swiss Science Council/Editorial Office

The building concept of the new Cantonal Hospital Aarau focuses on functionality and short distances for staff and patients. On a floor area of around 110,000 square meters, 472 inpatient beds, 130 day clinic places and 21 operating theaters are planned for the future. The new building is divided into three main areas: Outpatient clinics, functional areas and bed wards. Nevertheless, the areas form a unit in the overall building. The general contractor for the project is the construction group Implenia, while the master builder is the Marti Group.

The whole shell is made in the BIM-to-field model, without paper plans. The various plan houses are digitized and the employees on the construction site are equipped with tablets. This is one of the largest BIM projects in Switzerland to date. The geometry changes of the new building are a particular challenge in terms of construction technology. Already in the three basement levels, the floor plans change continuously until the complete building size of 120 by 145 meters is reached on the first floor. Completion of the construction project is scheduled for April 2026.

Source: Implenia

Osteoporosis is a gradual bone disease. Over the years, bone substance degrades throughout the skeleton, changing the structure of our bones. As a result, human bones become more porous and unstable. Osteoporosis often remains undetected for years, as bone loss per se does not cause pain. According to estimates, every third woman and every fifth man suffers from bone loss. The respective sex hormones appear to have an influence, since, for example, testosterone production decreases more slowly in men than in women, who already have a natural estrogen deficiency after menopause.

According to the Unispital Zurich, in a nutshell, the following tips help to reduce the increasing risk of osteoporosis:

• Get and stay moving a lot: However, short quick bursts, such as jogging and skipping, would stimulate the body's cells more than low-impact movements such as swimming and cycling. In older age, one should move more, as well as train endurance and strength.
• Three servings of dairy products a day (for example, one yogurt, 30 g of hard cheese and 2 dl of milk) strengthen the daily need for calcium. But ice whites are also important.
• Sunbathing for about 30 minutes a day around lunchtime is good for vitamin D intake, which ensures that calcium is better absorbed.
• Alcohol should generally only be consumed in small quantities. One beer (3 dl) for women and two beers (3dl) for men per day are fine.
• According to the University Hospital, smoking deprives the body of important vitamins and nutrients. It is better to give up smoking altogether.
• Both underweight and overweight must be avoided. An ideal Body Mass Index (BMI) is between 20 and 25.

Source: Blogpost University Hospital Zurich (read the whole article)

In 2021, an exchange took place between the ZHAW Department of Life Sciences and Facility Management and with Agroscope to discuss competencies of both research institutions in the field of systems research for healthy nutrition. With a signed declaration of intent (a "memorandum"), strategic research cooperation in the food sector is now also to be intensified.

Closing loops

The declared aim is to make a research contribution to a regenerative agro-food ecosystem in order, for example, to be able to make better use of by-products from food production, such as whey from recirculated production or bran from white flour for human nutrition. Agroscope, with its close ties to agriculture, conducts more research in primary production, while ZHAW focuses even more on processing and packaging research, among other things.

Currently, new answers and solutions are being sought in the field of fermentation processes. This also involves, for example, research into fermented foods and their influence on the intestinal microbiome, as can be seen from a statement by Agroscope emerges. A new research campus is currently being built at Agroscope in Posieux.

Together with the new "Future of Food" campus of the ZHAW and the new facility at Agroscope, the aim is to avoid duplication in Switzerland as a research location and also to regulate the handling of publications, rights and patents, which were also set out in the memorandum.

Source: Agroscope/Editorial Office

In the Middle Ages, when a castle lord needed a guard dog to catch a scoundrel, the result was at most a disturbance: The faithful dog could possibly be tricked by a Cervelat, as Iwan Raz, Portfolio Consultant at Siemens Security Systems, visualized with the help of an amusing video game sequence. Among other things, security systems are about protecting people and property and supporting operational processes. Raz mentioned access control with digital visitor management as an example, where the aim is to make the visitor experience both safe and comfortable. Security systems can provide support here. Raz illustrated this with another example: In a modern industrial park, for example, there may be an invisible cable buried in the ground, protected from the weather and maintenance-free. If someone crosses this imaginary line, this cable, the movement is detected by a capacitive field.

The detection triggers the video management system (VMS) and shows the affected image section. This interaction works much better today than it did ten years ago, said Raz. Another exciting application includes Siemens' fence monitoring as a proven perimeter protection. Usually, camera systems are used as a supplement to be able to verify alarms immediately. Artificial intelligence helps to efficiently evaluate various features such as the object type and the direction of objects (e.g., passers-by and vehicles) and to display them in a user-friendly way in the video management system. Measures can be derived quickly and effectively on the basis of various evaluation functions.

Mechanical locking systems have been part of mankind for centuries. Since 1960, however, with the first electronic locking systems, access control has evolved significantly. With the constant development of locking technology, it was possible at some point to show who, when, where and how was allowed to enter a building. What is added today is the flexibility with which, for example, a guest can be assigned the right to enter certain buildings and/or rooms "over-the-air" via a smartphone. The connectivity of individual security systems is therefore increasingly in focus. For this purpose, Siemens offers standardized API interfaces on the one hand, and corresponding consulting services with a focus on the customer process on the other. This enables all parties involved to design optimal system solutions.

Digitizing fire protection brings customer benefits

There are several opportunities for digitization around fire protection. Already during planning via creation, benefits can be generated with BIM processes, such as automatic detector placement or collaboration via BIM-360, and quality can also be improved. The service technician, who visits once a year as planned, is supported by evaluations that can be called up periodically and digitally. If necessary, problems can also be solved more quickly remotely than if the technician has to travel to the site - which saves the user time. Siemens is focusing on its Sinteso fire alarm solution, which is connected via a cloud. In addition, the BIM and facility management solution "Ecodomus" can simplify complexity for all trades while the plant is in operation. Using a digital twin, the various objects can be explored to evaluate, for example, the location or data sheet of a specific I/O module that has reported a fault. The future will also be digital in fire protection.

Save energy

Hansjörg Sidler from Siemens, who deals with the topic of energy efficiency, spoke about the holistic approach of energy engineering solutions. In view of the current situation in the energy market, he could not resist listing some bizarre approaches to innovation and savings as examples. For example, he told of an investor who, as a precautionary measure, had already purchased two million francs worth of heating oil for his production in the spring. Thanks to the existing dual-fuel burner, he can simply switch from gas to oil starting in October. The 20 gigawatt hours of gas already purchased can thus be sold again from the fall and the additional proceeds invested in energy efficiency.

"An additional heat pump including a peak load boiler is still the right thing to do from a CO2 perspective. However, with the current extremely high electricity prices, it may make sense to heat only with the peak-load oil boiler for a short time," Sidler says. "From an overall economic perspective, such an energy investor is doing something sensible with it," Sidler concedes. If he has too little electricity in the winter, he simply heats oil again toward winter. Siemens is currently receiving a lot of questions about the net-zero issue. In any case, new approaches to decarbonization are needed, says Sidler. The technology group is primarily concerned with existing plants in order to sound out the energy-saving potential. Prior to an initial project, a workshop is usually held to explore different variants of CO2 optimization, including budgeting, followed by the simulation of various target/actual scenarios. The "roadmap" approach is generally recommended in order to sound out step by step which measures with individual interim targets will lead to success.

The municipality of Mont-sur-Lausanne, for example, is proud of a current energy-saving project. Thanks to an energy-saving contract with Siemens Switzerland, the municipality in the canton of Vaud can now save a total of 60,000 Swiss francs per year at its Mottier sports center. The guarantee promise is contractually set for 15 years, Siemens says. The most important energy efficiency measures included renovating the ventilation and lighting systems and installing solar panels on the roof. Siemens was commissioned by the municipality to carry out other measures, such as replacing the water treatment system and optimizing the electrical installations.

The fact that any system only fulfills its purpose if the individual parts fit together is also evident in sports. As a small highlight, ski racing luminary Didier Cuche gave a presentation. Thus, in the environment of top-class sports, various parameters played a major role. Cuche emphasized that not only the ski boots, but also the supervisors and the condition and maintenance of the slopes have a significant impact on success as a ski racer. Siemens thus wanted to create a link to building technology. Because here, too, the following applies: People can only feel safe and be successful if they are optimally coordinated with each other.

Mr. Weber, in which core prevention areas will Suva invest more?

We are pursuing our 2020+ prevention program. As part of this program, we are focusing on a culture of prevention. In this culture, it should be a matter of course for all employees in a company to pay attention to safety and health. We support companies on this path with our consulting services and specific prevention offerings. The topic of prevention culture will of course also be of central importance in the context of the prevention focal points that continue to be important: asbestos, vital rules, heavy physical loads, protection against natural UV radiation, safe apprenticeship periods, etc. These focal points are important topics for the coming years.

The risk of accidents during leisure time may remain constantly high. What does this mean for Suva's prevention work?

It is important for us to show companies that costs are also incurred when employees have accidents during their free time and are therefore absent. The indirect costs are usually much higher. For example, if a company loses an order due to the absence of employees and this even results in a contractual penalty. We counter this with a holistic approach: namely, to make companies aware that their employees should also pay more attention to safety in their free time, e.g., that they should also take to heart the careful use of a drill at home.

Why has your focus in sports been very much on football lately?

We want to be active where we can have the greatest impact. In the focus on sports, this is football with the over 40,000 accidents that happen every year. But many accidents also occur in snow sports, cycling and mountain biking. When we address the entrepreneurs on the subject of occupational safety in the company, we use the cooperation to also address the aspect of leisure accidents. It is important for us to build this bridge with our customers.

How will Suva fulfill its role as an implementing body for company inspections?

Our basic mission is and remains the enforcement of the Accident Insurance Act (UVG) and monitoring in the companies. In addition, we are increasingly using digital tools to reach more companies. For example, we have introduced self-monitoring, in which companies can carry out an independent assessment of their situation using an online questionnaire. They then receive suggestions from us for targeted measures and further information to increase the level of safety. So far, around 15,000 customers have taken advantage of our service. This is not a substitute for our checks, but is intended to help increase coverage and active use of digital tools. However, on-farm checks still remain in place.

What do you see as the biggest challenges for Suva in the coming years?

What will certainly continue to gain in importance is prevention and occupational health management. In times of a shortage of skilled workers and a lack of learners, taking care of one's own employees is of central importance. We help here with practice-oriented instruments. We offer a wide range of preventive services - from self-service modules to consulting and integrated safety.

Russia's war of aggression is prompting the EU Commission to establish a new cyberspace monitoring center. In a call for tenders issued on October 25, it is therefore looking for a provider to set up the new "EU Cybersecurity situational awareness and analysis center" facility. The tender ran for just three weeks.

The reason given for the October 25-November 14 alert was the current, ongoing hybrid threat from Russia's attack on Ukraine and the risk of spillover to the EU. Also mentioned is an "increased threat of escalation," and the "threats and warnings of direct attacks on EU member states and key infrastructure" (Kritis).

According to "Heise", the EU Commission budgets 22 million euros for the fast-track contract, which is to run for 48 months. Within a week from the start of the contract, the contractor is to have programmed a "dashboard" to collect more real-time data on IT incidents and threats. The EU Commission's new Cyber Centre must be "fully interoperable with EU facilities."

Source: Editorial Office/Heise

The security of electricity supply in Switzerland is not at risk in the winter of 2022/2023, but supply bottlenecks cannot be completely ruled out. This is the Conclusion of a study on behalf of the Swiss Federal Office of Energy, accompanied by the Electricity Commission Elcom and the Federal Office for Land Economic Supply (BWL).

In the study, various scenarios with different availabilities of gas and nuclear power plants were investigated and simulated. The combination of meterological conditions and power plant outages was also run through and the probability of bottlenecks calculated. However, the Federal Council concludes that the measures adopted so far already make a significant contribution to the energy supply in winter.

With a hydropower reserve, energy could be shifted to the critical period at the end of winter. The provision of a temporary reserve power plant in Birr, Aargau, and other reserve power plants and emergency power groups could also move additional energy into the system. Other measures include increasing capacity in the transmission grid, providing a bailout for system-critical power companies, and temporarily reducing the residual water levy.

Different model scenarios

The reference scenario assumes that the availability of French nuclear power plants is reduced by 35 percent in the winter of 2022/2023, but that there is sufficient gas available across Europe to generate electricity. The calculations showed that sufficient energy from domestic and foreign production would be available to meet Swiss electricity demand in this scenario. The prerequisite, however, is that market-based electricity trading in Europe continues to function and that mutual support in shortage situations is guaranteed.

Gas shortage scenarioHere, it is assumed that electricity production throughout Europe is restricted by around 15 percent. In a majority (87 percent) of the approximately 2400 simulations for this scenario, there is no electricity supply shortage in Switzerland. In 8 percent of the simulations, the missing amount of electricity corresponds to more than one winter day's consumption (ENS: Energy Not Served), which is around 170 GWh. In five percent, the amount of electricity missing in winter is equivalent to more than two and a half winter day's consumption. The hydropower reserve, reserve power plants and emergency power groups are available to deal with such cases, and conservation efforts also play their part.

Nuclear power outage scenarioIf as much as 50 percent of the nuclear power plant fleet in France and, in addition, the Swiss nuclear power plants Leibstadt and Beznau 1 were to fail in winter, regionally tense situations could arise in Europe, which, however, would not extend to Switzerland, according to the federal government, thanks to the available hydropower and sufficient import capacities from the other neighboring zones.

Extreme scenario: The combination of restricted gas availability across Europe and the unavailability of all Swiss nuclear power plants would have a significant impact on Switzerland. In such a scenario, which is, however, very unlikely, an average amount of electricity equivalent to almost six typical winter days' consumption would be missing in winter.

Source: Bund/Editorial

Cameras today are de facto computers with a lens. The use of a video intelligence can According to an analysis by the International Security Ligue also be an important test for a company's management level. Video surveillance not only prevents property from being protected, but when used correctly, it can also improve business processes such as compliance and thus positively impact the bottom line.

Installations without expertise: not very useful

The International Security Ligue report mentions some expert testimony. For example, some security executives believe that companies in general are underutilizing the systems and that features are also being given away. This relates to features in integration, remote monitoring and analytics, among others, he said. Another expert noted that some companies install network cameras only to assume that simply putting them into operation will make a difference, but do not prioritize the need for professional maintenance and management of the systems.

Today's video security systems are improving rapidly, but advanced features are meaningless if there is a lack of resources or understanding among operations personnel, experts added.

Clearly outlined strategies and equipment plans

However, lack of planning and security expertise could lead to expensive camera installations that would not meet expectations. Strong partnerships between all stakeholders, from security service providers to business unit managers, are important to increase the business value of security video applications, he said. Most importantly, he said, it has become increasingly important to establish clear lines and a well-defined strategy that should be incorporated into the design of the system.

The specialist group advises the following three steps, which companies should first go through as checklists:

• First, a strategic plan for security equipment should emerge. Such a needs or equipment plan could save an organization from investing in unnecessary security technology, he said. The project, type of technology and how it can be further developed should be clearly defined within an organization
• Furthermore, a clear usage scenario for cameras should be outlined. For example, the purpose of each camera should be precisely documented. For example, should a camera only provide visual evidence or also enable remote assessment?
• An annual assessment or audit may also be useful to ensure that a video surveillance system is functioning properly, is being used for its intended purposes, and that video surveillance continues to be the right tool for the job.

Source: International Security Ligue / Editorial Office