Challenge: Reducing CO2 Emissions with Data in Built Environment

Focus Area: Built in Environment

Forum Virium Helsinki announces the opening of a call for the second round of innovative pilots as part of the FinEst Twins project. The built environment challenge of the programme is Reducing CO2 emissions with data in built environment.

Pilot host: KIRAHub

Apply here to this challenge after the application period opens on 17 February at 12:00 (EET).

Buildings are a significant source of CO2 emissions. Helsinki aims to become a carbon-neutral city by 2035, and residents’ actions and building performance automation play a crucial role in achieving this goal. For residents to make sustainable choices, they need to better understand the impact of their actions on the environment. For buildings to optimize their performance and emissions, we need new approaches to utilize data and control buildings as holistic systems.

How can we develop innovative and effective solutions that visualize CO2 emissions from the built environment and encourage residents to reduce their own carbon footprint? And additionally how can we utilize data to better optimize the performance of our buildings?

Our goal is to create solutions that:

• Visualize: Clearly present CO2 emissions from the built environment in Helsinki
•  Motivate: Encourage residents to make sustainable choices and reduce their carbon footprint
• Automate: Utilize data in a new way to optimize building performance and CO2 emissions
• Promote community engagement: Connect residents and inspire collective actions to reduce emissions

The solution could be, for example:

• Digital application or platform: Provides interactive information on emissions, offers personalized feedback, and gives tips for sustainable choices. Example: An app that displays real-time energy consumption and CO₂ emissions of a building and compares them to other buildings.
• Physical installations or artworks: Visualize emissions and their impacts in a concrete and illustrative way. Example: A public artwork that changes color based on the city’s CO2 emission levels.
• Gamification and challenges: Motivate residents to compete and collaborate in reducing emissions. Example: A city-wide game where residents earn points for making sustainable choices.

The solution should be:

• Innovative and distinctive
• Easy to understand and accessible
• Impactful and motivating
• Practically implementable

Budget

10,000€ (VAT 0%) for one (1) solution. The budget can be used to cover costs related to testing and development of the winning solution.

Evaluation and selection process

The evaluation and selection of the winning solution will follow this call’s general evaluation process. The winner will be selected based on the general evaluation criteria.

Tenders for focus area built environment are submitted using this specific form. In addition to filling in the form, each Bidder can submit a maximum of four (4) other attachments supporting their tender. Please note that in this focus area it is not mandatory to submit any attachments.

Forum Virium Helsinki, The FinEst Twins project’s experts and the selected members from each pilot host organisations will evaluate the tenders submitted by the deadline and select the best tenders based on scoring. The final selection in each challenge is made based on the general evaluation criteria. All participants in the tender competition will be notified of the results. The procuring entity has the right to decide not to carry out the procurement, considering factors such as the total funding available or the quality of the tenders submitted. 

Order of precedence: 

1. The information provided on the form

2. The information presented in the attachments to the tender

3. The information provided in the potential online event

Materials and information provided outside the form, its attachments, or the online event will not be considered as part of the tender.

General Evaluation Process

For the purpose of evaluation, tenders submitted will be evaluated based on the following quality criteria in accordance with the specified weightings: 1) feasibility (40 %), 2) novelty and innovativeness (30 %), 3) impact and sustainability (20 %), and 4) scalability (10 %). The maximum number of points is 100. Each challenge has a fixed price, which means that the price is not an evaluation criteria.

Each evaluation criterion is scored on a scale of 0–3 points. The maximum total score that a tender can receive is 100 points.

The scoring will be evaluated accordingly:

• 3 points: The criterion is met excellently.
• 2 points: The criterion is well met.
• 1 point: The criterion has been taken into account to some extent.
• 0 points: The criterion has been taken into account weakly or not at all.

General Evaluation Criteria

1. Feasibility, weight 40 % (0-21p equals max. 40 points)

• Equivalency: The proposal meets the specific challenge description. (0-3p)
• Clarity of the tender: The description of measures, goals, timetables and resources shows that the solution can be implemented in a high-quality and safe manner, within the agreed timeframe and at the location specified in the invitation to tender. (0-3p)
• Technical feasibility: The solution can be realistically implemented with current technology/data/resources available. (0-3p)
• Competence: The Bidder demonstrates that they have sufficient competence and resources to implement the service. Competence of the personnel assigned for the pilot project, e.g. CVs or other characterisations and support material. (0-3p)
• Restrictions: The Bidder has no limitations (e.g. policy issues, competitive setting, or other) to work in collaboration with the pilot hosts, stakeholders, and other operators being involved in the pilot programme. (0-3p)
• Economic viability: The solution is economically viable. Consider development costs, operating costs, and potential return on investment. (0-3p)
• Market viability: The solution has a market fit. (0-3p)

2. Novelty and innovativeness, weight 30 % (0-9p equals max. 30 points)

• Novelty: The solution is new to the industry or to the specific area it targets. (0-3p)
• Innovative qualities: The solution has innovative qualities which bring value for the challenge it solves. (Evaluation is carried out based on the personal competence and general and special know-how of the members of the evaluation panel selected by the procuring entity) (0-3p)
• Degree of change: The pilot project introduces more disruptive innovations than incremental improvements like new practices/solutions/perspectives compared to the existing similar solutions. (0-3p)

3. Impact and sustainability, weight 20 % (0-9p equals max. 20 points)

• Comprehensibility: The intended impact of the service and the method to verify the impact are described clearly. (0-3p)
• Positive impact: The solution demonstrates a clear positive impact on solving the identified challenge. (0-3p)
• User needs: The solution addresses a real need or solves a challenge. Innovations that are problem-driven are more likely to be successful. (0-3p)

4. Scalability, weight 10 % (0-9p equals max. 10 points)

• Replicability: The service can be replicated or reproduced in another environment. (0-3p)
• Scalability: The Bidder demonstrates that their solution has sufficient possibilities to be beneficial for wider usage (e.g. different audience or user groups, more organisations, other countries, or other factors) than only during the specified 6 month pilot period. (0-3p)
• Business value: The solution offers potential for new business. (0-3p)

Each criterion will be evaluated as a whole. Points will be awarded at a minimum interval of 0-100 points and expressed to 2 decimal places. Tenders evaluated to be of equal value may receive the same score. In a situation where multiple tenders receive the same total score, the deciding factor will be the highest score of the criteria starting from the first criteria of the top category feasibility to the last criteria of the last category in a numerical order. 

About KIRAHub

KIRAHub is a National innovation ecosystem dedicated to advancing the sustainable digital transformation of the built environment sector.

Support provided during the pilot period

The selected company will receive support from the pilot host like meetings, relevant contacts or data, feedback, and guidance for future development of the solution.

In case of any questions, please contact the organizer satu.reijonen@forumvirium.fi or Teemu Lehtinen, teemu@kirahub.org.

Important Links

Check the information about the mini-piloting programme.

Register to the info session!

Apply here to this challenge after the application period opens on 17 February at 12:00 (EET).

Photo: Vesa Laitinen