Technopolis was awarded an Energy Genius of the Year 2023 recognition

The annual sustainability recognition is granted by the Ministry of Economic Affairs and Employment of Finland, the Finnish Energy Authority and Motiva. The piloting of the smart building automation control system significantly improved the energy efficiency of the properties linked to the system without compromising indoor conditions.

Adopted in 2022, the energy efficiency control system promotes Technopolis’ target of shifting to using carbon-neutral energy in its properties by 2030. Reducing energy consumption is essential to achieving the goal.

The Energy Genius of the Year competition annually rewards impactful and successful sustainability actions taken by companies and municipalities that have signed energy efficiency agreements. In 2023, the Energy Genius of the Year recognition was awarded to three recipients including Technopolis.

“Using data analytics in the smart control of building automation is proof of modern, duplicable energy ingenuity to which more and more properties are hoped to transition. The data model deployed by Technopolis analyzes measurement and follow-up data accurately and comprehensively, processing it in a brilliant manner to support the continuous optimization and prediction of a property’s energy use and conditions. With this system, Technopolis has managed to enhance its energy use without compromising indoor conditions,” says the Energy Authority’s Tiina Sekki, chair of the jury picking the winners of the competition.

“It is great to receive recognition for our energy efficiency efforts. We decided to add intelligence to the control of building automation. A more proactive and dynamic way of managing technical building services as well as IoT sensors matched our needs for a digital leap, and we chose to pilot Lassila & Tikanoja’s Smartti Automation in our properties,” states Technopolis’ Sustainability Manager Johanna Kivelä.

In the first phase of the pilot project, comparable properties’ real estate electricity consumption decreased on average by over 8% and heating energy consumption by more than 20% compared to the previous year. The targets set at the beginning of the cooperation were exceeded notably, and the use of the system has been expanded to other properties as well. 

The Smartti Automation solution is based on L&T’s proprietary technology that optimizes the indoor conditions of a property while improving energy efficiency. The system can be connected to an existing building automation solution without major investments in equipment, and it can be linked with external data sources. The system leverages, for example, temperature history and weather forecast data to make hundreds of daily optimization decisions on the management of indoor conditions and energy use.

In addition to continuous optimization, the system analyzes the condition of the technical building services equipment of a property and detects potential issues in energy use even before they emerge. Besides ensuring better indoor conditions and more efficient energy consumption, the system also helps improve the user satisfaction of a property and reduce maintenance costs.

The piloting of the smart control system was implemented in close collaboration between Technopolis and Lassila & Tikanoja. For Technopolis, the piloting involved close cooperation externally with both the service provider and the property maintenance company as well as internally, as the deployment required seamless cooperation between the Group, local property teams and the IT team.

“Reducing energy consumption is one of the most effective ways to decrease the climate impact of properties and reach the set emissions reduction targets in a cost-effective manner. Technopolis has done excellent work to improve energy efficiency. The obtained results provide concrete evidence of how significant savings in energy use can also be achieved in modern and well-managed properties without compromising indoor conditions. We are in a good position to continue our fruitful collaboration,” says Oskari Raitanen, Manager, Energy Efficiency and Sustainability at Lassila & Tikanoja.

The foundation for Technopolis’ sustainability is to enable customers to be sustainable. This work is about continuous development, which has allowed Technopolis to develop new ways to improve the energy efficiency of properties while supporting the well-being of the people using them. Technopolis wants to be a pioneer in sustainability in the property business.

“We have actively piloted various AI and data analytics-based solutions that enhance energy efficiency – both in Finland and our other operating countries. This culture of piloting has made it possible for us to take a digital leap in our sustainability work. This recognition for the smart advancement of energy efficiency is a great step on our journey towards carbon neutrality,” says Kivelä.