Periodic Reporting for period 1 - procuRE (Pre-commercial Procurement of Breakthrough Solutions for 100% Renewable Energy Supply in Buildings)
Reporting period: 2020-12-01 to 2021-06-30
It is expected that 90% of the currently existing building stock will still be in service in 2050, the year in which many cities want to reach carbon neutrality. European policies and legislation are in place to accelerate the decarbonisation in the building sector, starting out, however, from a situation where renovation is making only a moderate contribution (0.4 to 1.2% of buildings per year) and the complete replacement of the existing stock is very slow (1-1.5% per year) and not desirable. To achieve our climate goals, renovation in Europe must be accelerated, lifting many more existing buildings to an optimal efficiency level as well as maximising the self-use of renewable energy.
An increasing number of cities, regions and other owners of major building portfolios wish to achieve 100% renewable energy supply (RES) in their buildings. These actors are faced with barriers, such as individual constraints for adaptation for each building, provision of supply and storage, optimisation of operation and integration of solutions across technologies. Integration of the optimal selection of cutting-edge Renewable Energy technologies requires a level of expertise most owners and their planners cannot be expected to acquire. The construction sector is extremely fragmented, where more than 95% of manufacturers and professionals operate as Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), and most in separate national or local markets. Furthermore, investors have a natural preference for low-risk solutions and a scepticism to complexity.
Currently, there are no adequate products on the market which can deliver a 100% renewable building without undertaking invasive measures to the envelope. The Buyers Group alone operates 21,000 buildings; almost a dozen other procurers are already following the project with more expected. Their portfolios constitute ten-thousands of buildings with sufficient envelope quality to deploy the envisioned solutions. Procurers wish these buildings to be supplied by 100% local RES within a short timeframe. To make this possible, it is expected that suppliers will follow an “active approach”, optimising heavy loads in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) etc, adding intelligent (remote) control, energy production and storage while responding to specific usage requirements to optimise the entire building.
An increasing number of cities, regions and other owners of major building portfolios wish to achieve 100% renewable energy supply (RES) in their buildings. These actors are faced with barriers, such as individual constraints for adaptation for each building, provision of supply and storage, optimisation of operation and integration of solutions across technologies. Integration of the optimal selection of cutting-edge Renewable Energy technologies requires a level of expertise most owners and their planners cannot be expected to acquire. The construction sector is extremely fragmented, where more than 95% of manufacturers and professionals operate as Small and Medium-Sized Enterprises (SMEs), and most in separate national or local markets. Furthermore, investors have a natural preference for low-risk solutions and a scepticism to complexity.
Currently, there are no adequate products on the market which can deliver a 100% renewable building without undertaking invasive measures to the envelope. The Buyers Group alone operates 21,000 buildings; almost a dozen other procurers are already following the project with more expected. Their portfolios constitute ten-thousands of buildings with sufficient envelope quality to deploy the envisioned solutions. Procurers wish these buildings to be supplied by 100% local RES within a short timeframe. To make this possible, it is expected that suppliers will follow an “active approach”, optimising heavy loads in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) etc, adding intelligent (remote) control, energy production and storage while responding to specific usage requirements to optimise the entire building.
During the first Reporting Period (RP1), the project has been in phase 0 – curiosity driven research and preparation of the PCP Call for Tenders. This is reflected in activities organised in WPs 1, 2, 7, 8 and 9.
In WP1 – procuRE Co-design and technical solution – the consortium partners have worked to define the various specifications that tenderers must consider in their applications. The specifications include common requirements (functional, non-functional, organisation and business, legal and regulatory), use cases, process models, supported by context information (e.g. information about existing systems and processes that need to be taken into account), as well as by change management considerations. More than 100 requirements have been defined, complemented by 11 use cases and their process models as well as Building information, Focus Groups and five Personas. Aligned with the innovative nature of the PCP, the use cases describe expected end results as opposed to detailed workflows, to allow innovative ideas being put forward by tenderers.
WP2 – Preparation stage and call specifications – has dealt with two main aspects in RP1: fostering an Open Market Consultation and preparing the Call for Tender documents. The two aspects are closely linked to each other. The Open Market Consultation in the form of a series of events, dissemination, and communication actions.
Close stakeholder collaboration was required to ensure that the specifications developed in WP1 are adequate and realistic within the project timeframe. Feedback by potential applicants was collected in a systematic way through a dedicated OMC questionnaire (Appendix II) and used to inform the developments in WP1.
The development of the Call for Tender documents has followed the EC guidance for structuring the call documents. Staff with procurement expertise were involved from each procurer, supported by the independent Expert Advisory Board as well as PCP expert empirica and technical expert EURAC. The call documents specify all requirements and deadlines in the procurement, and provide supportive materials, such as application templates and model agreements.
The procurers follow a value-based approach to the procurement, giving considerable weight to the quality of the tenders. The assessment applied in the project is documented in D7.1 in WP7 – Evaluation & impact assessment.
Throughout phase 0 of the PCP the project partners have been carrying out dissemination and communication activities as part of WP8 – Communication and dissemination. Several adjustments were undertaken to reflect the difficulties in stakeholder engagement arising from the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in online-OMC events. Very positive results have been achieved in the Open Market Consultations in terms of participation and receiving supplier feedback on the project specifications.
Throughout the phase, the project management was applied to ensure the project results are delivered in high quality and with as little delay as possible (WP9 – Management). This included applying Quality Assurance (QA) measures and following clear instructions (e.g. deliverable production processes).
In WP1 – procuRE Co-design and technical solution – the consortium partners have worked to define the various specifications that tenderers must consider in their applications. The specifications include common requirements (functional, non-functional, organisation and business, legal and regulatory), use cases, process models, supported by context information (e.g. information about existing systems and processes that need to be taken into account), as well as by change management considerations. More than 100 requirements have been defined, complemented by 11 use cases and their process models as well as Building information, Focus Groups and five Personas. Aligned with the innovative nature of the PCP, the use cases describe expected end results as opposed to detailed workflows, to allow innovative ideas being put forward by tenderers.
WP2 – Preparation stage and call specifications – has dealt with two main aspects in RP1: fostering an Open Market Consultation and preparing the Call for Tender documents. The two aspects are closely linked to each other. The Open Market Consultation in the form of a series of events, dissemination, and communication actions.
Close stakeholder collaboration was required to ensure that the specifications developed in WP1 are adequate and realistic within the project timeframe. Feedback by potential applicants was collected in a systematic way through a dedicated OMC questionnaire (Appendix II) and used to inform the developments in WP1.
The development of the Call for Tender documents has followed the EC guidance for structuring the call documents. Staff with procurement expertise were involved from each procurer, supported by the independent Expert Advisory Board as well as PCP expert empirica and technical expert EURAC. The call documents specify all requirements and deadlines in the procurement, and provide supportive materials, such as application templates and model agreements.
The procurers follow a value-based approach to the procurement, giving considerable weight to the quality of the tenders. The assessment applied in the project is documented in D7.1 in WP7 – Evaluation & impact assessment.
Throughout phase 0 of the PCP the project partners have been carrying out dissemination and communication activities as part of WP8 – Communication and dissemination. Several adjustments were undertaken to reflect the difficulties in stakeholder engagement arising from the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in online-OMC events. Very positive results have been achieved in the Open Market Consultations in terms of participation and receiving supplier feedback on the project specifications.
Throughout the phase, the project management was applied to ensure the project results are delivered in high quality and with as little delay as possible (WP9 – Management). This included applying Quality Assurance (QA) measures and following clear instructions (e.g. deliverable production processes).
A key result is the Challenge Brief and Request for Tenders describing the unmet meets of procurers to renovate a large number of buildings to the highest standards.
Suppliers are to design, develop, and test an innovative Renovation Approach capable of generating Renovation Packages delivering 100% renewable energy supply to any existing non-residential building with adequate envelope quality. The Renovation Approach is to be tested through generating and implementing Renovation Packages for specific non-residential buildings in Buyers Group portfolios, the Demonstration Sites.
A supplier's Renovation Approach is expected to constitute a complete set of methods, technologies, services and devices integrated in a well-documented toolkit which includes at least: building assessment framework, system design and control approach, RES production, interoperable integration of legacy devices, data management and data sharing, building control, storage solutions, finance and contracting models, life-cycle cost approach, continuous commissioning, behaviour-targeting education and training of occupants and professionals.
During Phase I and Phase II, suppliers adapt, extend, and apply their Renovation Approach to generate Renovation Packages for six specific buildings in Buyers Group portfolios with increasing level of detail. During these two phases, suppliers will apply their Co-Design procedure to facilitate information exchange, involvement, decision-making etc. Successful tenderers for Phase III will then implement the Renovation Packages in three allocated buildings, ensure performance and apply the Continuous Commissioning procedure. The initial delivery of the Renovation Package is to be turnkey-ready.
Suppliers are to design, develop, and test an innovative Renovation Approach capable of generating Renovation Packages delivering 100% renewable energy supply to any existing non-residential building with adequate envelope quality. The Renovation Approach is to be tested through generating and implementing Renovation Packages for specific non-residential buildings in Buyers Group portfolios, the Demonstration Sites.
A supplier's Renovation Approach is expected to constitute a complete set of methods, technologies, services and devices integrated in a well-documented toolkit which includes at least: building assessment framework, system design and control approach, RES production, interoperable integration of legacy devices, data management and data sharing, building control, storage solutions, finance and contracting models, life-cycle cost approach, continuous commissioning, behaviour-targeting education and training of occupants and professionals.
During Phase I and Phase II, suppliers adapt, extend, and apply their Renovation Approach to generate Renovation Packages for six specific buildings in Buyers Group portfolios with increasing level of detail. During these two phases, suppliers will apply their Co-Design procedure to facilitate information exchange, involvement, decision-making etc. Successful tenderers for Phase III will then implement the Renovation Packages in three allocated buildings, ensure performance and apply the Continuous Commissioning procedure. The initial delivery of the Renovation Package is to be turnkey-ready.