SAVE ENERGY is an European Project (CIP-ICT-PSP-238882 PROJECT) that will address the challenge of behaviour transformation through the use of ICT (serious game and real time information) as an enabler of energy efficiency in five Public building in five European cities – Helsinki, Leiden, Lisbon, Luleå and Manchester.
Objectives
Information and communication technologies (ICT) are recognized as enablers for economic growth and higher energy efficiency. The main objective of the SAVE ENERGY project is to make use of ICT to transform the behaviour of users of public buildings regarding energy efficiency through serious games and real time information from sensors and actuators. SAVE ENERGY will build upon the Living Labs methodology to provide an engaging virtual environment for users, citizens and policy makers to gain awareness, understanding and experience associated with energy saving attitudes.
Technology Platforms
The SAVE ENERGY platform comprises a local data collection platform to be installed in 5 different pilot buildings and a central platform where the information from all the pilots is consolidated, analysed and compared to energy efficiency models which will be optimised along the project. The interaction with the users through real time information or serious games can take place locally or remotely by using wireless terminals or the Internet, namely the Web 2.0 portal, which will be used as a social network tool for behaviour transformation.
The local platform shows the resource and device integrator part, which will enable the interoperability of sensors, actuators and meters. This layer will integrate into the central platform middleware which allows the integration of bus systems, mobile and computer platforms. The user interface layer includes web interfaces for computers and mobile devices, the gaming and simulation engines and a business logic service.
Five pilots for energy efficient in public buildings
Five pilot buildings will be fitted with sensors, metering and control devices (energy efficiency management system) acting upon the electrical appliances (energy consumption). The gathered data will feed the technology platform, generating real time information and providing inputs for the serious game. The impact of both real time information and serious game on the users’ energy consumption patterns is expected to lead to profound behaviour transformation and to significant energy savings. The results may suggest new indicators, metrics and best practices that can be further explored within the context of innovative buildings design and policy recommendations.
The Lisbon Pilot is an administrative building owned by the municipality and provides public services to the Lisbon residents. The initial construction of the building had little consideration for the energy environment dimension.Lisbon pilot is committed not only to foster behavior transformation but also to extend the results to other buildings of the municipality and to disseminate proactively the results beyond the consortium.
The Manchester Pilot is the Town Hall building located at centre of historic city of Manchester. It is a typical construction from the XIX Century, and has been recognized as an historic monument with the highest grade of national protection.ICT is considered the best approach to achieve the required energy efficiency performance, considering the major restrictions on what can be applied at structure level. The municipality will extend the results to other buildings in Manchester and will be involved in a strong proactive dissemination of the best practice pilot case.
The key objective at Leiden Pilot is to improve the energy efficiency at the Town Hall, first built in the XVI century, where a variety of public services are provided for the local communities. The ICT Energy Efficiency solution to be installed will be tested and compared against other building, and the results are expected to be scaled up and implemented in other public buildings at regional level in Holland.
The Luleå pilot is owned by the municipality and provides cultural services to the Lulea Residents. Lulea Pilot intends to achieve energy efficiency performance through ICT applied to the Energy Management System and empowering the users of the building to take appropriate actions.Luleå Pilot intends to extend its energy efficiency practices beyond the building, by motivating the behaviour transformation of users of this very popular cultural space visited daily by an average of 3.000 people. The Municipality intends to extend the same system and methodologies to other buildings in the municipality.
The key objective at the Helsinki pilot is to improve the energy efficiency at schools with the support of ICT technologies. This applies to different type of users (teachers, students, technical support personnel, and students’ families). The proactive dissemination of the results will duplicate SAVE ENERGY system and methodologies in the schools (there are 170 in Helsinki) and will have impact in the formulation of future Energy efficiency policies. The pilot will be working in close liaison with NOKIA partners on wireless technologies and the environment sustainability products and services.
A proactive dissemination strategy will be the key success factor for the SAVE ENERGY project to achieve the desired impact and to ensure the sustainable deployment of the solutions by implementing as dissemination plan aiming for multiplier effects. The SAVE ENERGY Web 2.0 web portal will be implemented and dynamically updated by both the communities involved and the consortium, providing a delivery platform for the SAVE ENERGY tools, including the Serious Game, Smart ICT Energy Efficiency model and platform.
SAVE ENERGY will use the User-Driven Open Innovation methodology of Living Labs, thus bringing together from the beginning all the stakeholders including technology suppliers, service providers, public authorities and user communities who together will define the functionality of the new energy efficiency services.
User Behaviour Transformation
The main focus of the SAVE ENERGY project is to foster behavior transformation regarding energy efficiency. The project stakeholders will become aware of the consequences of living in a world of ever more expensive energy and the potential impact (economic, environment and political) of current trends, while making them aware of the alternatives at hand. They will also be encouraged to co-create and validate innovative policies and green products and services within the context of the Living Labs methodology.
Policy Recommendations
The SAVE ENERGY Roadmap will provide the technical, social, economic and political guidelines emerging from the project as a tool to sustain the SAVE ENERGY vision beyond the project duration and its community. The project policy engagement at regional, national and European levels will be greatly facilitated by an Advisory Board which will validate the energy efficiency policy recommendations derived from SAVE ENERGY Pilots results.
