EDI-Net at a glance

The EDI-Net (Energy Data Innovation Network) initiative analyses and communicates sub-hourly electricity, gas and water smart meter data to identify waste and savings opportunities, reduce consumption and save money. The initiative is aimed at public authorities’ decision makers, financial planners, energy and building managers and building users. An online forum and workshops facilitate the sharing of knowledge, experiences and best practices to support public authorities during the implementation of their sustainable energy and climate action plans.

First EDI-Net training session in Leicester, UK, shows: Innovative systems for the implementation of a sustainable energy policy are very popular among local authorities!

27 participants from all over Europe made their way to the university De Montfort in Leicester, UK, on July 5, 2017 to participate in the first EDI-Net training session. Motivated by the idea of driving the topic of energy efficiency even more innovative in their city in the future, EDI-Net invited interested district representatives, energy managers, university lecturers etc. to the first EDI-Net training session. As part of a one-day seminar, the participants expected an intensive exchange on the advantages and possibilities of EDI-Net. The event was opened by the host and project coordinator Paul Fleming, DE MONTFORT UNIVERSITY.

With his contribution to the EDI-Net concept, he impressively demonstrated to the participants the motivation, the goals and the expectations of the project. After the successful start, contributions from Strahil Birov, EMPIRICA, Prakash Patel, LEICESTER CITY COUNCIL, Alexander Nordhus, CITY OF NUREMBERG, and Juan Antonio Bas Villalobos, GENERALITAT DE CATALUNYA, followed about the already available materials and the individual instruments of EDI-Net. The tools consist of the dashboard, the forum and the benchmarking tool and serve the user-friendly data processing, the information and the exchange between the different users. What data can be fed into the EDI-Net system and how this can be implemented was demonstrated by Greame Stuart, DE MONTFORT UNIVERSITY. Afterwards another interesting contribution from Mr. Birov to the topic "Create a campaign around EDI-Net" followed. The speaker offered assistance in the areas of analysis of target groups, planning of suitable materials and instruments for engagement, developing tailor-made messages, achieving consistency and branding, rolling out a campaign, continually improving and exchanging successful practices with others. This extensive theme was accompanied by practical examples from the pilot cities. In the last presentation, also referred by Strahil Birov, the topic coaching was addressed. It has been demonstrated how convinced EDI-Net users can continue to drive the issue of energy saving within their municipality. The speakers of the pilot cities have explained how this can be implemented in practice. The final part of the event was rounded off with an outlook on the next project steps.

The event was an all-round training session - we are already looking forward to our next training session, which will take place in Barcelona, Spain, in October 2017. Have we raised your interest? Sign up today on our EDI-Net website. Improve the sustainable energy and water management of your municipality and save money at the same time - be part of the Energy Data Innovation Network!

Wanted: Municipalities serious about reducing energy and water use

EDI-Net is seeking cities and towns interested in improving the water and energy efficiency of their public buildings. By making use of smart metering to analyse and communicate electricity, gas and water data, local authorities can identify significant savings opportunities. These opportunities can lead to reductions in energy and water consumption by anywhere from 5 to 15%.

Leicester City Council (UK), City of Nuremberg (Germany) and the region of Catalonia (Spain), have just completed a trial of a new system developed within the framework of the EU-funded initiative and are ready to share their experience and expertise with 20 more local authorities interested in joining the initiative. These new pilot municipalities will not only be able to use the EDI-Net system free of charge, they will also get access to a special online forum, a customised dashboard, a helpdesk and free training workshops. To be eligible, local authorities must be able to provide sub-hourly energy consumption data – local decision makers, financial planners, energy and climate protection managers are invited to express their interest.

Want to learn more? Visit our EDI-Net website, sign up to our EDI-Net newsletter or write an email to info@edi-net.eu.

_{Source: Manhattan, New York City, United States (Photo by NASA on Unsplash)}

Nuremberg saves energy with EDI-Net

The city of Nuremberg has to pay about € 40 million annually for its approximately 1,700 public buildings. Although the total energy and water consumption of all urban properties has been reduced by about 35 percent since the year 2000, the costs increases year by year. This is one of the reasons why the building contractor has applied for the participation in the EU-funded project "Energy Data Innovation Network" (EDI-Net) in summer 2015. Together with its project partners, the city of Leicester and the region of Catalonia, it is intended to significantly reduce energy consumption in municipal buildings. In a press release, Daniel F. Ulrich, the planning and construction department of the city of Nuremberg, said that "[...] our partners from Leicester (GB) and Barcelona (SP) are developing a software based on complex, so-called big data analyzes, which can precisely calculate the energy consumption and compile the result quite "untechnically" and comprehensible to the actual consumption of the building." The task of the city of Nuremberg is to provide current consumption data of selected buildings and the feedback of the respective building managers. "In addition to the financial managers and energy managers, we also want to specifically address the users of the buildings - for example, the behavior of pupils and teachers strongly influences the energy consumption of a school. In addition to the economic evaluation, a presentation without a number is possible," says Ulrich. The EDI-Net project runs until February 2019 and is to be gradually extended to other interested municipalities.

Contact:
Alexander Nordhus, City of Nuremberg - Planning and Construction Department, Municipal Energy Management and Building Physics H/ZA-KEM, alexander.nordhus@stadt.nuernberg.de

Further information:
Climate protection in Nuremberg (DE)
Press release of the city of Nuremberg (DE)
EU project EDI-Net

^{Source: City of Nuremberg (Creative Commons Zero)}

Overview of smart metering in Germany, Spain and the United Kingdom – An EDI-Net report from Georg Vogt, EMPIRICA

The EDI-Net contribution by Georg Vogt provides a comprehensive overview of the critical requirements for smart metering from institutional organizations such as municipalities.

An excerpt:
The current activities on European and national level focus mostly on the residential sector, ignoring the potential impact on already existing infrastructure of Automatic Meter Reading (AMR) and energy management systems having achieved savings for over a decade especially by municipalities leading by example. Around 34% of energy used in buildings is consumed in the non-residential sector. German communities consumed 127.7 petajoule in 2013 of which ¾ where for heat with the share for electricity continuously increasing. In total, cost for energy amount to 4 billion Euro every year.

You want to read on? Visit our EDI-Net website and read the full article.

Events

International Climate Alliance Conference & General Assembly

Reducing CO2 emissions is not enough. A drastic shift in the way we use resources, shape policy and go about our daily routines is in order if we are to tackle the climate challenge. The transformation we need to see in our regions, cities and towns is not something that just happens – it is a process that we need to make happen. Local authorities are central to this task. On a daily basis, they face questions such as how to gain inspiration for the change needed, how to promote integrated and coherent approaches, how to finance these transitions and how to monitor progress. 

The 2017 International Climate Alliance Conference will support regions, cities and towns in tackling these challenges. The conference, hosted by the Region of North Rhine Westphalia and the City of Essen, takes place in Europe’s 2017 Green Capital – a "city in transformation". Highlighting examples of successful municipal transformations supported by strong partnerships, effective tools, and the right financing, this event will engage participants via workshops, special in-situ sessions and ample space for exchange and input.

An in-situ session on EDI-Net "How EDI-Net (Energy Data Innovation Network) supports the City of Nuremberg in the field of energy savings" will be presented by Alexander Nordhus, our project partner from the city of Nuremberg. Within the framework of the market place you will find an EDI-Net information desk with the possibility to exchange directly with the project participants. You can also ask for information on how your local authority or organization can use EDI-Net as a test on our common Climate Alliance projects information desk.

Register by 8 September!

20 – 22 September 2017, Essen, Germany

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Empowering smart solutions for better cities

The conference "Empowering smart solutions for better cities" will bring together creative thinkers and decision-makers in urban planning, sustainable energy, mobility, ICT, smart business models and user-centric innovation. High level city representatives will debate the transformation of European cities, while smart cities projects will showcase innovative solutions and discuss crucial steps on the path to a smarter city.

This smart cities conference, organised by the Smart Cities Information System (SCIS) and the European Commission, is seeking to encourage the replication of technological solutions, good practices and lesson learning among cities and businesses. It will contribute to the ambition of accelerating Europe’s transition towards a low-carbon, resource-efficient, competitive and inclusive economy. Interactively designed, the event will engage the audience in full participation and collective story-telling.

2 –3 October 2017, Budapest, Hungary

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CITYnvest Final Conference - The power of innovative financing Renovating buildings for energy-efficient cities

Boosting investment for sustainable building renovation is vital for achieving a clean energy transition in Europe. This is particularly true as buildings are responsible for 40% of European primary energy consumption and 36% of CO2 emissions. The problem is: there is no easy way for cities to access financing, including from the EU.

To make this happen and to raise awareness on potential barriers and success factors, we will share with you a set of policy recommendations at CITYnvest’s final conference, in Brussels, on 4-5 December 2017.

The conference will sum up all you need to know on innovative financing models for energy efficiency building renovations. There will also be interactive round-tables where you can exchange and learn about the implementation of CITYnvest projects.

4 – 5 December 2017, Brussels, Belgium

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Smart Cities Conference

The Smart Cities Conference is an initiative dedicated to open, inclusive, formal and informal dialogue on Smart Cities issues among all interested stakeholders. It was built from the organizers’ desire to put into an academic debate different aspects of Romanian cities’ life, but also of the cities outside the country’s borders, through multidisciplinary scientific approaches that will talk about the past, present and future, starting from: acceptance of democracy as the most efficient tool of governance and also acceptance and compliance with the state’s rules.

The participation invitation is addressed to specialists and researchers from all domains of social and humanist disciplines, from political science, communication, legal science, medical science, European integration studies, sociology, to architecture, economy, computer science, cybernetics and many others. It brings together representatives of governments, intergovernmental organisations, private sector, technical community, academia and civil society, with the aim to facilitate multistakeholder discussions, exchanges and collaboration on Smart Cities related issues.

7 – 8 December 2017, Bucharest, Romania

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