Better use of technology to quickly make the built environment more sustainable

Major steps in making the Netherlands more sustainable can be taken relatively easily and quickly by using already available technologies from technical companies in a smart, efficient way. That is a quick conclusion after a working visit by Tom van der Lee, Member of Parliament for GroenLinks, to Royal HaskoningDHV and Danfoss BV

By: Dimitri Reijerman

As a guest of the FHI trade association Building Automation, Van der Lee first visited Royal HaskoningDHV in Rotterdam. The GroenLinks politician has, among other things, the energy transition and innovation in his portfolio.

During the kick-off of the working visit by RHDHV, carried out by Eva Klein Schiphorst (business unit director) and Jan Bakker (strategic consultant and board member of the trade association Gebouw Automatisering), it quickly became apparent that technology such as sensors can make buildings smarter at a rapid pace. According to Klein Schiphorst, the changing technology applied in buildings also provides other revenue models, including the work for consultancy and engineering firms such as RHDHV.

However, there are also barriers, such as the risk-averse behavior of decision-makers in the real estate market. And that includes the government, said Klein Schiphorst. Van der Lee responded by saying that the government is mainly concerned with budgetary issues and that there is more thinking in the short term.

Anke de Jong, director business-group Fastlane, showed the Fastlane approach in a presentation, the aim of which is to accelerate the sustainability of buildings. A five-step approach has been developed for this purpose. In the first step, building information is collected and possible sustainability opportunities are identified. This is followed by an extensive building survey and the measures to be taken are determined during an expert session. The fourth step is a calculation of the impact and the costs. In order to gain insight into the entire approach, end users can view various scenarios via a dashboard in a browser window. According to RHDHV, all concrete savings can be studied in this way.

Van der Lee seemed impressed by the possibilities of this platform. With the results of the climate tables in mind, the politician hoped that platforms such as Fastlane could also be used to make entire residential areas more sustainable. Fastlane can be used as a benchmark and showcase. According to De Jong, this is certainly not impossible, but because residential areas usually contain many different types of homes, this is a more complicated sustainability issue.

Visit to Danfoss

The second round of the working visit took place at Danfoss, a Danish manufacturer of applications and products in heating, cooling and drive technology. Van der Lee spoke with Jan Schoemaker (VP Buildings Business Unit), Ton Bekkers (Sales Dir. Danfoss Netherlands), Ed Vissenberg (Sales manager), and Ahmet Canpolat (Director Business Development Commercial Buildings).

After a short company presentation, an interesting and broad discussion quickly arose about the possibilities to achieve CO2 reductions through energy-saving measures and efficiency. One of the subjects that was discussed was the water-side adjustment of central heating systems. In this, the maximum amount of water that may be circulated is determined on the basis of the supply temperature, the return temperature and the capacity of a radiator.

According to Van der Lee, measures such as the water-side balancing of central heating systems should take place as standard when installing and maintaining each central heating system. According to the GroenLinks politician, this requirement should also be laid down in law, for example by means of an amendment to the Building Decree.

In addition to the more efficient use of (existing) central heating systems, the gentlemen also discussed the challenges that arise when installing heating networks. For example, innovative heating networks in the Danish capital Copenhagen were discussed, such as the Nordhavn project. Through area development, a hybrid network was installed there using heat recovery from supermarkets and data centers. The industry has now also arrived at the fourth generation of heating networks, in which heat from a large number of sources and at lower temperatures is used to heat residential areas. The Netherlands can benefit from these types of developments that contribute to the energy transition.

After his working visit, Van der Lee was of the opinion that there are many ways to quickly achieve success in the energy transition with relatively simple measures and existing technical products and services. It is therefore of great importance that politics gains more expertise from Dutch technology companies. They are certainly prepared to actively think along and play a role in the sustainability of the built environment in our country.