The main objective of the ERKKI – Optimising Energy Efficiency in Challenging Public Cultural and Leisure Facilities project is to enhance the energy efficiency of challenging public properties, thereby increasing business opportunities for solution providers.
Objective
As stated in the Carbon Neutral Helsinki emissions reduction programme, the City of Helsinki aims to become carbon-neutral by 2030. Achieving the goal requires action regarding both energy production and its consumption. Measures related to the energy efficiency of buildings support the transition towards the goal when energy is consumed only as necessary and at the right time.
During the project, we will pilot new, innovative, technological and digital solutions that affect energy efficiency in properties used by the City’s Culture and Leisure Division. The solutions tested in the project may enhance energy efficiency directly or benefit it indirectly and facilitate and lay a foundation for more energy-efficient use of buildings. The pilot sites are challenging public buildings where energy efficiency measures may be affected by preservation regulations or complex building services engineering.
Duration, partners, funding and total budget
- The project will run from 1 March 2024 to 31 August 2026.
- The total project budget is 455,874 euros, of which Forum Virium Helsinki’s share is 300,376 euros. The project is partly funded by the European Union (ERDF).
- The project is carried out in cooperation with Green Net Finland.
Role of Forum Virium Helsinki
Forum Virium Helsinki is one of the project implementers, together with Green Net Finland. The ERKKI project continues the themes covered by past Forum Virium Helsinki projects, in which we have developed data platforms that facilitate the sharing of data sources related to buildings and solutions that use real-time measurement data. The aim of these projects has been to improve aspects such as the energy efficiency and indoor air quality of buildings.
As a part of the ERKKI project, Forum Virium Helsinki is in charge of piloting new and innovative solutions in Helsinki. Before the actual pilot, we are organising an innovation competition that will lay the foundation for future procurements and filter potential energy efficiency solutions. Innovation competitions and pilot projects can also increase the dialogue and cooperation between the City and companies.
Forum Virium Helsinki is also carrying out site surveys with the help of robotics as a part of the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) method on buildings. The SRI shows buildings’ smart readiness in terms of energy efficiency, building users and demand response of energy.
Benefits for Helsinki
The project aims to develop dialogue between companies and the City’s procurement units and support the public procurements made by the City. The project provides the City with new solution proposals and businesses with practical experiences. Through the pilot projects, the City will gain important information about existing and future energy efficiency solutions. The project allows companies to use public facilities as testing and development platforms for solutions and services.
The pilots and their assessment also help scale the solutions to other public sites and prioritise solutions that promote energy efficiency to achieve the City’s carbon neutrality goal.
Sustainability
The ERKKI project takes responsibility into account from many perspectives. The solutions developed for the pilot sites are in line with the principles of sustainable development, and the project supports the City of Helsinki in achieving its carbon neutrality goal.
Read more about the project on the website of Green Net Finland.
Article image: Lauri Rotko, Helsinki Partners