Collaborating with Places for People, the Catapult ‘Innovator Challenge’ will help the SMEs unlock new routes-to-market, secure investment and breakdown barriers to growth.
The successful SMEs are:
Amp X
Atamate
Clean Energy Prospector
Pumped Heat
Sero
Studio Victoria
Wondrwall
The Zero Carbon Housing Solutions, Smart Buildings and Estates challenge called for innovators working in one or more of the following areas:
Integrating innovative low carbon generation or infrastructure technologies into the building or estate fabric
Zero carbon domestic heating solutions
Leveraging data from end users, infrastructure and networks to create new services and business models that accelerate the transition to net zero
Enabling active, interoperable control systems that delivers more efficient and flexible operation of the whole building & estate energy system
Delivering better living environments.
“To achieve Net Zero, we will need to fully decarbonise our ‘Buildings & Estates’ and the seven companies that we’ll now be working with, all have the potential to make a sizeable contribution” said Paul Jordan, Business Lead for Innovator Support and International at Energy Systems Catapult. “I’m delighted to see such a range of solutions from digital platforms and building control, heat solutions and microgrids, to new business propositions like heat- as-a-service and digital twins. Our team is excited to be working with these promising innovators and helping them to accelerate towards full commercialisation.”
Julie Alexander, Director of Technology and Innovation at Places for People, added that the route to zero carbon is complicated and that with the huge variation in property types across the UK, the solutions will be varied, and in some cases, complex. So much more needs to be done to understand how we can meet this challenge and how we can scale solutions that will be reliable and affordable.
Amp X is developing a transactive‐ready digital energy platform underpinned by autonomy, machine-learning, advanced data analytics and control systems ‐ aiming to provide flexibility services that can deliver cost and carbon savings for consumers, and to unlock new business models and revenue opportunities for different stakeholders across the system.
Atamate has developed a smart building platform that focuses on precise automated control and continuous monitoring of the internal environment to reduce energy consumption, simplify building management and optimise maintenance - while increasing occupant comfort and security.
Clean Energy Prospector (Cepro) design, build and operate ‘community microgrids' for new build residential housing developments, allowing third-party providers to finance the cost of installing low carbon infrastructure, rather than the housing developer. Cepro’s innovative business model means the cost of technologies needed to create zero carbon homes - such as solar PV, heat pumps, battery storage and digital control systems - are financed via a community Energy Services Company, mitigating costs for developer and helping to maximise the market attractiveness for zero carbon homes for individual house-buyers.
Pumped Heat has developed a Heat Battery using their innovative Warmstone solution - a low cost and safe technology that stores off-peak or excess renewable electricity as it is generated to use later on-demand with conventional heating and hot water systems.
Sero's mission is to deliver whole-life solutions for Net Zero that covers buildings, construction, energy, lifestyles and financing. They aim is to create a community of homes that can intelligently support the wider energy system and comfort-as-a-service offerings that cover heat, power and transport for consumers.
Studio Victoria is a unique business that brings together specialisms usually associated with a number of different companies into a single interoperable solution. By integrating data from sensors, drones, laser scanners, virtual reality, augmented reality and machine learning, they provide clients with data-driven Digital Twins that promote more efficient heating and cooling in buildings.
Wondrwall is a technology company that combine intelligent home automation, clean energy production and super-efficient heating systems, to help homes save money, time and the environment. Wondrwall integrates carbon neutral domestic energy management, such as solar, batteries and heating solutions, with automated and intuitive control - powered by Artificial Intelligence (AI).
For additional information:
