SUSTAIN organises a webinar to present the awarded SME experiments of the first open call

The consortium of the SUSTAIN Eurocluster has celebrated this morning a webinar to present the awarded SME experiments of the first SUSTAIN Open Call. A total of 12 projects have been presented, with proposals targeting smart building challenges in the construction industry which feature ICT technologies, such as Artificial Intelligence, Augmented Reality and Building Information Modelling (BIM).

The online session has started with an introduction to the project on behalf of the SUSTAIN coordinator, Nikolaos Laloumis, who has made a presentation about the origins of the project and the goals the consortium is pursuing. “We want to help SME overcome their challenges in the building sector engaging them in the current innovation advancements”, has said. Our aim, he continued, is to empower companies to develop cutting-edge solutions that address key issues facing the industry. The research assistant at CERTH also announced that the second Open Call will be launched during summer, targeting higher TRL projects to support “market-oriented solutions”.

After his presentation, the session has continued with the presentation of the 12 awarded SME experiments, listed below:

1. AIBEM. The aim of this project is to develop an AI-driven solution that assesses building’s exterior and roof to lay the foundation for effective energy efficiency and solar planning. This solution will use satellite imagery, leveraging various deep neural networks to provide precise 2D and 3D estimations of building exteriors and roofs. Yang Li, co-founder of Vypno, made the presentation of the consortium, in which this German company is the only single partner.

• ATMOS. This project aims at developing a system that will combine different sensor devices and technologies, which will provide data for the SRI to evaluate the digital capacity of buildings. The presentation was carried out by Svetoslav Dimitrov, director of business development at Loren Networks, the SME leading this consortium.

• BRAINED. The main objective of this project is to bridge the identified gap in data-based performance evaluation of buildings, between the design and operation phases, with a clear focus on PEB Construction and Renovation projects. The project was presented by Georgios Dermentzis, from the Hellenic Passive House Institute (HPHI). Both Greek entites, HPHI and DOMX, form this consortium.

• SRI-CHATPED. Following the development of PEDMaker, a personal energy companion app that coaches users on their energy usage, this consortium wants CHATPED/PEDMaker to be a one-stop shop for peoples energy needs. It will give clever recommendations, guide on how to integrate energy producing assets and promote forming energy communities with matching partners. The only single partner of this project is the Austrian company, LuxActive KG. Christoph Krdinka, CEO at LuxActive carried out the presentation during the webinar.

• ECOSYNERGY. This project aims at transforming building performance evaluation through a novel, phased approach that starts with Sustainability Rating Indicators (SRIs) and progresses to Energy Performance Certificates (EPC). The project was presented by Esther Izquierdo, Innovation Director at ARCbcn and Ivan Capdevila, director at ERF. Both companies take part in this consortium.

• EDIFICE aims to develop an advanced AI based numerical tool combined with methods of data collection, analysis, and processing to generate predictive models that feed a digital twin of the building under monitoring. BALTA SRL is the only single partner of this project, which was presented by Giuseppe Barile.

• IEM. The main objective of the project is to develop a unified methodology that integrates the evaluation of the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) and the procedure for the Energy Efficiency Certification (EPC) of buildings. The project was presented by Yazim, chief operations manager at PACI, a Catalan company specialised in energy efficiency projects.

• INCISIONS. This project was conceived to develop technologies which carry out drone aerial surveys to estimate energy potential and aid determining Smart readiness of a building. This is to be achieved by identifying openings, heat losses and energy assets available in a facility, such as Photovoltaic (PV) panels. The presentation was made by Christopher Ververidis, from the Greek company Hypertech, which, in turn, is the only single partner in this project.

• INSPIRE. This project is designed to help building users achieve energy independence from fossil fuels by leveraging the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) to assess building capabilities and support the investment in renewable energy systems (RES) and smart technologies integrated with advanced IT systems. Presentation was made by Giuseppe Mastandrea, team manager at Energy@Work SCARL, single member of the consortium.

1. PREMISES. The aim of the project is to improve an AI-supported predictive maintenance prototype for buildings. PREMISES integrates self-learning AI algorithms and enriches existing data with IoT inputs. This enables each piece of equipment to act in harmony with others, intelligently pursuing its objectives while optimizing overall energy efficiency and enhancing occupant comfort. The presentation was carried out by Régis Decorme, director of R2M Solution France, which takes part in the consortium with Osmose.

1. Smart BEAR. This project aims to create a cutting-edge platform that facilitates the visualization of Smart Readiness Indicators (SRI) potential upgrades within a Virtual Reality (VR) environment and seamlessly integrates this vital information into the Building Information Modeling (BIM) environment. Theoklitos Klitou, researcher at the Cypriot company, Eupyhia Tech Ltd, carried out the presentation of the project. Eupyhia Tech Ltd is the only single partner in this project.

1. srAI-BEMS: “SRI-aware AI services for improved Building Energy Management Systems”. The project introduces a novel approach to Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) by utilizing the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) to dynamically assess each building’s energy efficiency capabilities, transcending the limitations of existing one-fits-all solutions. Plegma Labs from Greece is the main partner of this project.

After the presentations of the awarded projects, the Research Engineer at IsZEB, Pinelopi Valiouli went on with a presentation about the importance of the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI). Valiouli gave details about the origins of the SRI framework, which was developed after the revision of the European Energy Performance of Buildings Directive (EPBD) back in 2018.

Finally, the coordinator of the SUSTAIN Eurocluster, Nikolaos Laloumis, explained the timeline of the first open call, pointing out the extension of the projects, which will be of 9 months and finishing in December this year. Laloumis also explained the figure of coaches within this Open Call, which stands for the assigned partner to each project which will be in charge of the follow-up.

For more information, you may reach us out via email at sustain.eurocluster@gmail.com.