GrowSmarter has reached a milestone year: by the end of 2017, all the smart solutions will be in place and in use in Stockholm. Smart solutions from each area of action have already been implemented, so the work is now shifting from implementation to demonstration and evaluation of the project. A lot of emphasis is put on communication and marketing activities in 2017 and 2018. Each partner will make a communication plan and contribute to the demonstration site’s general communication activity plan, but also look into how the smart solutions can be marketed internationally.

Action area 1: Low-Energy Districts

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

What’s happening in Valla Torg, Årsta and the Slakthus area buildings?

The smart solutions for low energy districts will be rolled out in the building zones in Valla Torg, Årsta and the Slakthus area (see map here). For an overview of the measures being implemented, click here.

In Valla Torg The refurbishment of the first higher storey building (7G) started in September 2016. Insulation of facades, installation of new windows and other climate shell related measures were carried out by Skanska.

The refurbishment of the first lower storey building (8H) started in October 2016. Work on insulating facades and changing windows has already been done, and other climate shell measures will be finalised by the end of March 2017.

The refurbishment of the second higher storey building (6F) started in December 2016. All of the measures to be implemented are part of the energy efficient climate shell (solution 1).

In the private condominia, Brf Årstakrönet, the implementation (solution 1) and (solution 3) started in January 2016 with the installation of an adaptive control system by Veolia. Veolia has also installed photovoltaic arrays (solution 4) on the roofs. The solar energy production is connected with energy storage (batteries), so that solar energy can be stored and used when it’s needed. The same solutions will also be implemented in the Slakthus area buildings during later stages of refurbishment.

In Slakthus the refurbishment of building 8 by the Fastighetskontoret (Real Estate Administration Office) started in October 2016. Unfortunately, the overall budget for the Real Estate Administration was cut, so the second building (building 7) cannot be refurbished in 2017 as planned. Therefore, we are working on finding a replacement building. The alternative building will also be situated in Slakthus area.

Action area 2: Integrated infrastructures

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

Installing smart LED-lighting

As described in an earlier blog, the installation of smart LED-street lights (solution 5) was finalised in June 2016 in Valla Torg and has now been in use for a full winter season. The measure will bring an estimated 50% energy savings, but actual figures have not yet been analysed.

A Smart Connected City

In Stockholm the smart connected city will use the extensive fibre optic network provided and administered by Stokab, a company owned by Stockholm City Council. Several Internet of Things applications and solutions can be built on top of the network.

In April 2017 sensors will be installed in the Slakthus area. One set of sensors will measure the pedestrian and bicycle traffic in the area. Another set of sensors will analyse vehicle traffic. We are especially interested in understanding how people travel to events that take place in this area: there are three sports arenas situated close to each other which host events year-round.

We will also install sensors for measuring air pollution. These will be placed in the same locations as the vehicle transport sensors. The real-time data that is collected will be delivered to an open consolidated big data platform for further analysis. A workshop with city departments and other interested parties is planned for the 8th of March to define the types of analysis to be done. Later in spring when the first set of data has been analysed, further workshops will be planned to define what kind of applications can be developed for lowering transport-based emissions based on the real-time data. In doing this we are defining ways to provide higher quality of life for citizens with smart connected solutions.

IBM, who are responsible for the open consolidated big data platform (solution 8), have two ongoing roles in GrowSmarter: “Sensing City Scale people movement” and “Movement of Pedestrians/Bicyclists”.

Under “Sensing City Scale people movement” IBM will analyse data on the flow of people to show how people move in the Slakthus area over time by creating heat maps. This analysis will be combined with other data such as public transport capacity, traffic measurements, weather, etc. to see how well the different transportation modes and capacities are optimised in the area, especially during events with a lot of people in motion. The project team, platform for data management, analysis tools and method are all already in place.

In “Movement of Pedestrians/Bicyclists” IBM will measure and study in detail specifically how pedestrians move in the city. A prototype user interface environment has been developed on the Bluemix platform. Sample data sets from relevant data sources have been uploaded into the Bluemix environment and made available for users, including vehicle traffic measurement data, bicycle traffic measurement data, bicycle accident data, and weather data for specific locations in the city. End user functions and graphical visualisation tools have been developed.

Together with the Traffic Administration, a plan for implementing new sensor data sources has been made. There will be 7 video sensors in the city connected via the fibre optic network to the Bluemix platform, which will feed into the traffic planner user environment in Bluemix. These sensors will be able to measure the flow, volume and direction of pedestrians, cyclists and vehicles in the selected city areas covered.

Waste Heat recovery

Fortum’s open district heating (solution 6) will be implemented in two locations. In Västberga, waste heat from data centres will be integrated into the district heating system.The same will be done for waste heat from Supermarkets in Farsta (some 5km south of the Slakthus area). The agreements have been signed and the installation in the Supermarket is completed. Due to delivery problems the heat pump could not be delivered as planned in March, so the installation in the data centre is postponed until June. When the solutions are in operation, the waste heat collected can be distributed into the district heating system and provide heat and hot water to more than 1,000 apartments.

Smart waste Handling

The waste handling system provided by Envac will be completed in June this year, with the terminal and inlets being installed during spring 2017. The different waste types will be separated by tenants into different coloured bags. The tenant places the bags in the inlet, and each bag colour is automatically identified and measured. Data from all six buildings in the project will be collected. The waste is then transported in underground pipes to the terminal. From the terminal the waste bags are sent to the sorting facility, where the different coloured bags are separated for recycling.

The smart waste handling has several benefits. It saves space compared to conventional waste containers, which can then be used for other purposes. The system also brings about benefits for hygiene and reduces bad odours. As the waste is piped to the terminal for collection, traffic for collecting waste at buildings will be reduced, meaning reduced traffic emissions but also less noise at residential buildings.

Action area 3: Sustainable Urban Mobility

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

Building logistics center and delivery boxes

The building logistics centre (solution 2), implemented by Carrier, started in September 2016 with the delivery of windows to Valla Torg. Carrier is together with Skanska discussing which material streams can be best handled by the logistics centre. The construction logistics are part of the production process, so the better production is planned and organised, the easier it is to provide just-in-time deliveries to construction sites. The materials are delivered outside work hours (after 5pm) so that they are available in the next morning at the construction site.

The implementation of delivery boxes (solution 9) by Carrier will be done in three buildings as part of the 2017 refurbishment plan in Valla Torg. Tenants can order packages and other deliveries straight home instead of picking them up from the nearest service point. The delivery from the service point to the building is done by cargo bikes.

Smart Traffic Management

Insero, together with NOAE (Network of Automotive Excellence) and Global car OEM, is implementing an information system for drivers (solution 10). In Stockholm ten traffic lights are equipped with software that can communicate and relay information about the status of the light and when it is about to switch. This is achieved through a data connection between the traffic light, the cars’ onboard software and GPS, and a central computer handling the calculations. Through a special device in the car, the driver will receive information about what speed to drive in order to reach a green light at the next junction. This information tool will be tested in two cars starting in March 2017. Effects on travel time and the drivers’ experiences will be evaluated.

KTH has together with Info24 (now Tingcore) developed a smartphone application (solution 10) to study changes in travel behaviour in a way that is more effective and has a greater response rate than traditional travel surveys. This will improve the travel demand management measures. In the same application, information about renewable fuels in Stockholm will be shown. This information contains updated information on where each alternative fuel can be tanked, together with most recent price.

Alternative fuel driven vehicles

As part of the GrowSmarter project, Fortum has planned to install up to 10 charging stations and one fast charger (solution 11). The fast charger is installed in Årsta. The normal chargers will be installed in Valla Torg, Slakthus area and Årsta during 2017.

The first refuelling station (solution 11) for renewable fuels is up and running. The filling station in Årsta is expected to be installed in the beginning of 2018.

Communication and marketing

In Stockholm several study visits have been arranged and there is a great interest in the GrowSmarter solutions. As more and more smart solutions are implemented, the study visits will become more frequent. In August 2017 there is a plan to have an event demonstrating the smart solutions in Valla Torg. Here the focus is on city representatives. In November/December 2017 a similar event will be arranged in the Slakthus area. In spring 2018 an event is planned for tenants in Valla Torg.

All Stockholm partners will produce their own communication activities plan in April, and contribute to an overall communication activities plan for the Stockholm site. In addition, the partners will start producing a marketing plan for their smart solutions as soon as the implementation is completed.

Mika Hakosalo

Site Manager, Stockholm

Action area 1: Low-Energy Districts

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here

Solution 1: Smart shell refurbishment

Site 1:

As mentioned in a previous blog post, this building is composed of 207 dwellings with a total surface of 14,165 m2, which will benefit from the passive refurbishment of the entire building façade. See the factsheet which provides an overview of this process here.

Insulation of the building is expected to lead to a reduction of the heating demand of the dwellings by approximately 43% due to the improved air tightness. The benefits for the tenants will not only be lower heating and energy bills, but also improved comfort and other qualitative aspects, such as noise and humidity insulation.

In order to assess the impact on user comfort, a survey and monitoring campaign was done in February 2017 for baselines, and a second survey and monitoring campaign will follow in 2018. Electricity and gas invoices will also be collected for baseline and reporting periods. The informational meeting with some of the tenants was held on 19 January, 2017 and was well received.

All the refurbishment work in the residential building of Passeig Santa Coloma 55-71 is being promoted by the public body responsible for social housing in Barcelona, Patronat Municipal de l’Habitatge de Barcelona - PMHB.

A successful case of public-private partnership in a residential refurbishment project

In March of 2016, after long negotiations, the first agreement for a pilot project of passive integral refurbishment was completed in a residential building in Barcelona. The refurbishment is being carried out within the renovation plan of Canyelles, a neighborhood built in the 1970s in response to a period of great migration.

In 2007, an agreement was signed between the City Council and the neighbourhood association to carry out renovation work on 65 buildings with a total of 2,524 dwellings in six phases, over six years. Each phase has been designed to carry out actions in different buildings, giving priority to structural problems and the improvement of thermal insulation, but also contributing to improving the urban elements. Phase 5 began in 2016.

Thanks to the public-private partnership agreement between the Housing Agency of Catalonia (AHC), which manages the renovations in the Canyelles neighborhood, and Gas Natural Fenosa, one of six residential buildings to be refurbished in phase 5 was included in the Growsmarter project at the beginning of 2016. It is a 56-dwelling building of about 5,000 m2 and the refurbishment is mainly based on passive criteria.

The European subsidy (GrowSmarter) and the participation of Gas Natural Fenosa as an Energy Service Company (ESCO) meant the refurbishments could be more ambitious than orginally planned, including: the additional installation of new windows and blinds in those dwelling sthat agreed to participate (77%) insulation of façade was increased, exceeding the current minimum requirements and further measures, like change of boilers, installation of efficient water taps (aerators) and home energy management systems have been included.

As part of the renovations, home energy management systems (HEMS) have also been installed allows the owners to monitor the energy usage of their home, becoming aware of their consumption and learning to reduce this by adjusting their consumption habits. In addition, the lessons learned from the installation of the HEMS will help Gas Natural Fenosa to develop customised value-added services for its customers in the future.

The monitoring of consumption through the HEMS’ installation started in July 2016 and will be carried out for two years from the end of the renovation project. Taking into account the limitations of the Organic Law on Data Protection, the values of aggregate consumption of the building will be available on the platform of the Barcelona City Council. In addition to this, within GrowSmarter, the dissemination of the results will be carried out nationally and internationally, with the aim of replicating this experience in buildings with similar characteristics.

Renovations started in June 2016 were completed at the beginning of this year. A technical-energy study of these passive measures carried out in collaboration with the Catalan Association of Architects (COAC) indicates that reducing heating demand and increasing thermal comfort in winter. Under these criteria, it has been estimated that the improvements proposed in GrowSmarter will allow a savings of 44% over current total energy consumption.

What are the advantages of the public-private collaboration within GrowSmarter?

Collaboration between the Housing Agency of Catalonia and Gas Natural Fenosa combined the efforts of GrowSmarter with the Aid for the refurbishment of residential buildings in 2016, published by the Housing Consortium of Barcelona (CHB). Thanks to this, both this residential tower and the other residential buildings selected in the project will be able to offer financial support to the residents for these renovations.

On the other hand, Gas Natural Fenosa has the opportunity to test a new business model, acting for the first time as an energy service company (ESCO) in the integral passive refurbishment of a residential building.

this business model the customers (residents) deal with a single company that completes the renovations and keeps track of energy savings over time. The residents can choose to pay for their share of the investments through monthly fees or a single upfront payment.

The project will improve the quality of life of the residents, providing improved comfort, reducing energy consumption, increasing the value of the dwelling, all with a reduced investment and a very affordable form of payment.

Lessons learned: difficulties and replicability

Due to the low heating demand in residential buildings in Barcelona and that only an estimated 40% of the heating demands are covered (PECQ 2011-2020 - Energy Plan, climate change and air quality of Barcelona), it is difficult to justify the renovations based only on savings. The aspects to be considered are rather the improvement of thermal comfort and the increased value of the property. But even so, the investment needed for the energy refurbishment are not affordable for the owners alone.

In the case of this project, the ongoing refurbishment project for the structural façade provided an an opportunity to tack on additional sustainable renovations, taking advantage of the fact that costs for painting, scaffolding, etc. could be shared.

The public-private collaboration is still a key factor in carrying out these measures: public administration has the role of proposing ways to favour the amortization of building refurbishment, for example through subsidies or tax incentives, and private enterprise can solve the problem of high investment costs for individual owners by acting as an energy services company (ESCO) to the community of owners of the building.

Smart solution 3: Stochastic model of appliance energy consumption

Among other research activities being carried out at the IREC (Catalonia Institute for Energy Research) is a GrowSmarter measure called the ‘Stochastic Model of Appliances Energy Consumption’. This is a tool that provides detailed load profiles of electric devices in a household.

In its current state, the tool is able to randomly generate the load profile of 15 different appliances according to the characteristics of the household, e.g. the building type (single family house or multifamily house), the number of occupants (from 1 to 5 occupants) and the appliance stock (type and energy labelling). This random generation of use profiles is based on the Spanish Time Use Data (TUD), a survey done in Spain by the Spanish Statistical Office (Instituto Nacional de Estadística, INE). TUD describes what people do at home over the course of the day, providing occupancy patterns and relating them to the use of appliances (e.g. if the activity is “laundry”, the “washing machine” will be used at that moment).

As an output, the model provides the following information: a) detailed profiles of each appliance’s consumption at 3-minute intervals b) a summary of the annual energy consumption of every appliance; and c) an energy comparison with more efficient appliances.

Impact of the stochastic model in the current trends of progressive electrification of households

The Stochastic Model of Appliances Energy Consumption is expected to be integrated in energy simulation tools and/or platforms to provide detailed information about the energy consumption of appliances in residential buildings.

From the point of view of the professional sector, this tool will generate detailed information related to electrical devices consumption. The aim is to design comprehensive strategies to reduce and manage energy consumption, including all types of energy usage in the residential sector, not only thermal ones (heating, cooling and domestic hot water).

From the point of view of the end-user, the tenants will have accurate and personalised consumption profiles at hand, enabling them to improve the energy performance of their homes. The most important impact of the model is to raise awareness about appliances’ consumption among citizens, in order to address appropriate strategies to improve energy efficiency in homes and to contribute to changing customer behaviour.

Action Area 3: Sustainable Mobility

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

Microdistribution of freight: On-board sensor units.

The on-board sensor unit deployed as part of the GrowSmarter project will be installed in the electric vehicles used in the microdistribution of freight measure in order to track different parameters (temperature, humidity, pollution, location …) while the tricycles are moving through the city. The information collected by the sensor units is transmitted to the GrowSmarter platform. These data can be lately used as input for different applications (e.g to determine the benefits of the micro-distribution of freight or to analyze the variation of pollution in a specific area)

2CAT has been working on the design and implementation of the on-board sensor unit that will be installed in several electrical vehicles used for the distribution of freight in a specific area of the city. This prototype is a multi-sensing wireless device that will monitor several parameters, such as temperature, luminosity, humidity, noise level, air pollution, and also the position at which these measurements are taken, so that it will be possible to map these parameters and monitor their variability during the full two years of the pilot duration. This monitoring solution will serve to:

• Explore the feasibility of tracking environmental parameters in a city in a mobile scenario with low-cost sensors to complement the information from the static environmental and pollution stations installed in specific places the city.

• Evaluate the environmental impact of the micro-distribution of freight solution through the comparison of the pollution in the delivery area with the one in its edges.

• Provide real-time tracking information about the path followed by the tricycles, which can be helpful to optimize delivery routes and, thus, improve the service and make it more competitive for the last-mile operator.

The sensing unit in the tricycles will be powered by the battery of the vehicles and will support cellular and WLAN communications to transmit the monitored information to the Growsmarter platform, where it will be processed and made available for the city services.

The mobile devices deployed in the project serve also as proof of concept to show the feasibility of using on-board units to monitor different parameters in a wide area (such as a city). This would help to reduce the expenses of installing and maintaining static and dedicated equipment for this aim.

During the next months i2CAT will work on the integration of the prototype with the electrical vehicles and on its on-field calibration and validation before the measure definitely starts. The microdistribution service is expected to be fully operational in early 2017.

Roberto Furió

Site Manager, Barcelona

Action area 1: Low-Energy Districts

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

Energy consultation in the Stegerwald settlement

The City of Cologne and its cooperation partner, the consumer center NRW, support the GrowSmarter project in Cologne. Tenants in the project area of the Stegerwaldsiedlung are eligible for a free energy consultation. This consultation is the perfect preparation for the installation of smart home devices and smart meters in the area. Tenants can receive an overview of their electricity and heating energy consumption as well as advice about heating and ventilation.

Consultants look at all household appliances, lamps, TVs and computers, as well as electric water heaters and other big electricity consumers, taking into account also the heating costs and total annual electricity consumption. In addition, tenants are asked about their electricity consumption habits, typical ventilation habits, and radiator settings. The design of the building and the location of the apartment are also included, since these factors also influence energy consumption. The total level of energy consumption is calculated from the data gathered, and the consultant provides recommendations for better-performing appliances the results are given to the energy consultant in a report for further check up.

The tenants were informed about this with a special invitation:

Action area 2: Integrated infrastructures

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

Open Air Hackathon – Cologne is starting to become a smart city

What is a smart city exactly and how can one bring it to the general public? –What about transparency, citizen participation and new forms of climate protection? Initiated by the activities of GrowSmarter, the City of Cologne, RheinEnergy and representatives of civil society pursued this question on 28 October 2016 at an Open Air Hackathon.

Within the framework of a “Pen and Paper Hackathon”, new application scenarios for a smart city were sought with specially developed environmental sensors. Under the motto "Open Air Cologne", interested parties were invited to place initial rudimentary sensors in different locations in Cologne to get an overview of where and how pollutant concentrations are generated and spread. As a first step, about 20 NO2 measuring stations should be installed for interested citizens in Cologne.

NO2 (nitrogen dioxide) is a gas emitted, among others, by combustion engines. The goal is not 100% accurate measurement results, but the transfer of technology and know-how. Competent experts from research and science as well as from the field of industry provide corresponding input before the first prototype sensors can be used to gain experience.

The pursuit of new ideas did not end with the conclusion of the Hackathon, it continues with the cooperation of the city of Cologne, project partners from GrowSmarter and the Kölner OK Lab (codefor.de) as well as the regular Open-Data-Roundtable initiated by the City of Cologne (#ODRC). The Hackathon was the starting point for a regular exchange with interested citizens and stakeholders, centring around questions like: What was the experience like with the sensors? How can technology be used in a targeted way to solve problems with open data? Does the solution already exist somewhere?

The Cologne OK Lab is a regional group of designers, developers, journalists and others who meet every two weeks to work on useful applications for open data.

In the process, the group develops different applications, for example to display Cologne’s playgrounds or monuments on maps, to find homes for animals in Cologne's animal shelters, or to show 3D representations of how many young people live in Cologne.

OK Lab is sponsored by the Open Knowledge Foundation, which launched the network of OK Labs in 2014. Code for Germany provides OK Labs with the necessary infrastructure to network with each other. In addition, the program supports the local groups in communication with government, institutions and the public. Decision-makers and administrations are also involved in the processes.

In this respect, the organisers of the Hackathon were grateful to have found this group interested in establishing the participative approach of GrowSmarter permanently. The event itself was divided into two sub-events: the actual sensors were built at the beginning of the one-week festival as part of an embedded hardware meetup and were distributed during this workshop. First, the functional principles of the sensors were shown and explained. There were demonstrations about what happens with the collected data and how it can be examined and further processed, e.g. to correlate with other data or create visualisations.

Participants could take sensors home, install them, and thus support Open Air Cologne with their own data. The second part of the Hackathon focused on the actual development of applications and the optimisations around the sensors themselves, including measurement accuracy, design of housing, etc. The discussions went until late in the evening with the participants working enthusiastically. For the first time, interested people will be part of the data collection and, in addition to the hardware and software engineering of environmental sensors, will also learn about the background and technical know-how on topics related to environmental measurements.

Where does it go from here?

Additional information will be found on following websites: http://openair.codingcologne.de/

The entire codebase will be available on: https://github.com/openaircgn

Action area 3: Sustainable Urban Mobility

To see all the measures to be implemented, click here.

Progress in CarSharing for sustainable urban mobility

The expansion of the mobility points in the Mülheim district is proceeding rapidly. Last year, four new Cambio CarSharing stations were opened. Two of them, REGENTEN and VON-SPARR, have already been equipped with charging stations from RheinEnergie (so-called Tank-E) and electric cars.

All new stations are within walking distance to public transport nodes. This is important in order to complement and connect different forms of mobility in the area. The station Bahnhof Mülheim is connected to tram, suburban train and regional transport. At the station Deutz, next to the station Auenweg at Charles-de-Gaulle-Platz, there is also a connection to the long-distance transportation. In the entire city area of Mülheim there will also be the possibility to use KVB´s bicycles, completing the service offer.

A total of 31 vehicles - including 4 electric ones - are now available to residents of the Mülheim area at different seven stations. Due to the variety of vehicles - in addition to the e-vehicles and small cars, there is also a truck, van or transporter – there are specific vehicles for many different requirements.

The GrowSmarter mobility points are not yet equipped with electric cars, but will also be equipped with Tank-Es and Renault Zoes in the following weeks. With a range of almost 120 km, the Renault Zoe is not just for going shopping in the city. Despite the compact size, it offers enough space for four people. Also the trunk has significant storage space. The Zoes are charged with green electricity. Thus the people of the Mülheim area can make a trip to the countryside without producing particulate pollution.

In addition to the seven existing stations, the station network in the district of Mülheim is to be further consolidated this year. Currently, two new stations are planned for 2017. The aim is to imlpement a comprehensive car-sharing service in Mülheim.

Presentation of GrowSmarter at 3rd World Internet Conference in Wuzhen/Shanghai

In September 2016 a delegation consisting of mayors of large towns, employees of market-leading enterprises and representatives of the company CETC visited the city of Cologne. The delegation was led by Dr. Wanje Chen from Graz, a follower city in GrowSmarter.

The representatives were informed about the aims and management of the smart city projects in Cologne. During a study tour in Stegerwald settlement the GrowSmarter project was presented. The integrated approach in the areas of energy, mobility and information technology impressed the delegation very much, and the city of Cologne was invited to participate at 3rdWorld Internet Conference in Wuzhen /Shanghai. This conference is attended by participants from all over the world.

The representative of the city of Cologne answered questions about smart city projects and GrowSmarter specifically to an audience of about 800. Particular attention was paid at the way of information and participation of the affected citizens during the entire process. The majors were highly interested in the implementation of innovative measures.

The exchange across the borders of continents has brought new knowledge and ideas to all sides, and should be continued.

District talk in Mülheim - Citizen participation in the GrowSmarter

On 15 December 2016, Mayor Reker invited the citizens of Mülheim to express their concerns and questions related to GrowSmarter. All the construction measures in Stegerwaldsiedlung as well as the plans for the mobile stations in the urban area Mülheim were presented. More than 600 suggestions and questions were collected from the participants, and Mrs. Reker assured that the questions would be answered within 14 days. A film was also shown to present the GrowSmarter measures and directly address tenants' concerns. The dialogue process is to be continued in summer 2017 with an event in Stegerwaldsiedlung.