Marcel Klotz

From Ageing Industrial Site to Strategic Redevelopment Opportunity

Retrofitting ageing building stock is where the real energy transition will be won, or lost. Hego Höfe demonstrates how a strategic façade upgrade can unlock both aesthetic and financial value, rather than settling for superficial renovation. By integrating BIPV into a historically layered site, the project turns a necessary upgrade into a long-term asset: reducing energy costs, enhancing visual identity, and increasing urban visibility. With Pixasolar as a partner, the result is not just a better façade, but a smarter business case for sustainable redevelopment.

“When we bought the site, it wasn’t just one building. Hego Höfe is a mix of industrial space and offices, more than 100 years old,” Mr. Marcel Klotz, building owner of Hego Höfe, explains. The part facing the main road had been given a ‘modern’ façade in the 1970s, but nowadays, it looks very bad, ugly, and it’s not on time anymore.

Beyond Cosmetic Renovation: A Façade That Performs

The city’s requirement and his own motivation were quite clear: the façade had to be renewed. But Marcel wanted more than a cosmetic upgrade. After reading about another project, he realised BIPV could do two things at once: a new façade, but also to gain power.

Turning Visibility into Value: Energy Generation at Scale

Today, the Hego Höfe façade delivers around 70 kWp. It can cover nearly half of the building’s power consumption per year.  Marcel: “We have a perfect win-win situation. We have a new façade which looks very pretty, and we have an outcome by power, which saves us money. There are thousands of cars driving by day by day and people phoning me saying, ‘wow’!

That makes me proud.”

Strong Belief as a Driver of Project Success

Ask Marcel about working with Pixasolar and he doesn’t hesitate: “Brilliant. One word: brilliant.” He credits a lot of that to the people working for Pixasolar: “Jochen Weick was from the first moment convinced about the project. Everybody was on fire. And they said: this is an excellent idea and we will support it as best as we can.”

Commitment and Momentum Through Complexity

“I mostly appreciated that the team truly believed in the concept and kept the project moving, even through a longer preparation phase and site constraints. It was really a good teamwork without any problem.”