Connected solutions for energy management in buildings

Purpose of the call for projects:

ENGIE Axima, in partnership with Angers Loire Métropole, is looking to identify digital technological bricks that could be used to manage energy flows (from production and consumption) within a building or facility.

Responses to this call for projects must address the following issues:

• Main themes: connected objects and a services platform that can be used to manage flows of energy data (systems, production, renewable energy, storage)
• Broader themes: solutions could also transmit and push information and data streams to induce virtuous behaviors and citizen/user awareness (indoor air quality, comfort)

The proposals should make it easier for various project stakeholders – communities, businesses and users – to collaborate better and more effectively, through innovative kinds of engagement.

Deadline for applications: December 14th, 2016 at midnight (CET)

Rewards and benefits:

The selection committee will choose a a maximum of five innovative proposals that meet the eligibility criteria defined by ENGIE Axima and its partners.

The winners will be eligible for one or more of the following:

• Project management and technical support from Angers Technopole. Project teams will be assisted by a dedicated member of staff, an engineer specializing in innovative projects, from Angers Technopole. The type of support will be tailored to match the level of maturity of the selected proposals. It could range from formalizing the project’s scope or business model, better characterizing the concept, prototyping the product or service, further developing the business/revenue model, etc. A first 6 months of free incubation will be provided with a physical workspace in the Maison de la Technopole collaborative space, as well as contacts with academic and economic stakeholder networks in the area
• A €7,500 loan offered by the Banque Populaire Atlantique
• Commercial support and coaching from ENGIE Axima and integration of the innovation into a business offering in the Angers Loire Métropole area or another operation by ENGIE Axima (or another entity in the ENGIE Group)

The winner of the best idea will also receive €1,500. The selection committee may also award a prize of this amount to the 2nd and 3rd best proposals.

Launching this call for projects in partnership with Angers Loire Métropole, who have also brought in ALTER and Angers Technopole, also means that the winning solutions will be tested as part of the redevelopment of the city center of Angers. The ANGERS CŒUR DE MAINE project and specifically the SAINT SERGE DOCKS site will be made available as a place to test the proposals, contributing to the ideas already developed by the community and the redevelopment and construction general contractors.

The proposals that involve connected objects will be implemented within the perimeter of Angers French Tech, a breeding ground for testing, creating and developing “tech” business projects.

Detailed description:

This call for projects is meant to identify bricks that will help develop energy services using digital technologies to manage energy production and consumption within a given building or facility.

Applicants should present their solution/services and indicate how it represents an innovation either technically, technologically or in terms of business models and/or uses. The solution can either be freestanding or else a brick that can be integrated into an broader contract involving energy targets, and should be able to address the following energy issues: integration of renewable energies, energy storage, comfort and quality of use in buildings, and air quality.

The solution may be used to meet a specific need during the construction or renovation of a building, facility or piece of infrastructure and may need to be applied at the scale of a single site, a neighborhood or a public or private property.

Planned application: the Angers Cœur de Maine operation

The proposals will contribute to the plans conceived by the urban development company ALTER, who are working on a planned redevelopment project for the city center of Angers, specifically on the SAINT SERGE DOCKS. This extensive development project calls for extending the site’s existing tertiary activities in order to ultimately create over 100,000 m² of new building (for various uses: education, training, research, recreation, etc.) as well as reduction of the highway that currently runs through it into an urban boulevard. These development and construction projects are open to experimentation and new ideas. The best solutions will be tested within the operation, putting ALTER and the local area at the forefront of the field of digital and connected objects for energy applications. The proposed tools and services may also be used to help future building operators better understand and characterize various flows (water, energy, people, goods, and more).

Examples:

Solutions and services expected to be provided thanks to connected objects:

Management of data on energy flows, water consumption, the movement of people

• Systems optimization, production, renewable energy, energy storage
• Managing user comfort in buildings: air quality, quality of space and ambience in buildings
• Security of goods and people
• Performance tools for results and engagement

Solutions and services expected to be supported by the implementation platform:

• Awareness-raising, informing and improving the behavior of users or citizens
• Development of new services and new uses for citizens and local businesses

Type of solutions being sought:

We are seeking technical, technological or service innovations in the building sector that correspond to the local area’s development approach. These can be freestanding or included in a more comprehensive offering by ENGIE Axima.

• The solutions proposed will need to be compatible with the principles of the “connected, energy-positive city” and be able to address any type of energy production and energy (electricity, heat, waste heat, etc.)
• They should help enable better collaboration between communities, service companies and users.
• The solutions should also be open and interoperable with all of the digital layers and automated functions of buildings and facilities.
• Connected objects will need to be able to provide information feedback quickly and at short notice, every day, and have sufficient battery life. They will also need to be easily integrated into a broader digital infrastructure like an energy management platform (whether through live data recovery or via an API, and platforms such as Microsoft Azure).
• The projects should be based on technically mature solutions that deserve to be tested and proven within either pilot or full-scale implementation. Proposed technical and technological solutions and business/usage models may be at various maturity levels (ex. mature solutions that need help getting to industrial-scale development, or new solutions in need of an initial testing ground).
• The innovation can be presented by a single entity (business, start-up, etc.) or developed by a consortium or EIG (economic interest grouping).

Eligibility and selection criteria:

Winners will be selected based on the following criteria:

• Relevance to the topic
• Innovative features of the project
• Economic and financial feasibility of the project
• Existence of a market
• Reasons for creating or developing the business
• Job creation and potential
• Time-to-market

Selection committee:

Representatives of ENGIE, ENGIE Axima, Angers Loire Métropole, Angers Technopole, ALTER, ADEME, the BPI (Public Investment Bank), Banque Populaire Atlantique

Selection Procedure:

Applications must include a description of:

• Your team
• Clients and markets
• References
• Development perspectives
• Financial projections

Please submit this information in English or French in a Word document, PowerPoint or PDF and attach it to your response to the call for projects. All applications must include the "summary" sheet, completely filled out.

Provisional timetable:

• Launch of the call for projects: October 6th, 2016
• Deadline for submissions: December 14th, 2016 at midnight CET
• Shortlist established in a closed-door session by the selection committee: December 2016
• Interview with shortlisted candidates: end January 2017
• Announcement of winners: Late January/early February 2017

Angers is a pioneering city in testing concepts for the "smart city", especially those based on a shared vision for connected objects. Area residents have skills and expertise in the digital economy that have the potential to be further developed in close collaboration with industries and corporations. In fact, the French Tech label obtained by the City of Angers in June 2015 recognizes the richness of the local electronic and digital ecosystem, specifically in the area of "connected objects".

In this context, the ENGIE Group, through its subsidiary ENGIE Axima, is aiming to provide solutions and services with increasing added value and to become a major player in the energy transition at the local level.