March 15, 2023
The use of artificial intelligence and cloud software in building technology creates numerous opportunities for managers and owners of commercial buildings to save costs and reduce CO2 emissions. For example, AI can be used to predictively control the heating system. Based on weather data and the thermal capacity of a building, heat pumps are used precisely when the price of electricity is cheap.
The more energy fed into our grid by the sun and wind, the greater the potential fluctuations in supply. Bundling many properties in smart building technology not only saves additional emissions and money - it also benefits the stability of the power grid. The importance of this contribution to stability is demonstrated not least by the energy crisis and the accompanying current regulations
Digital tools of a cloud software simplify the optimization and control of intelligent building technology enormously. Machine learning is used to record and evaluate operating data. Such data includes, for example, the supply and return temperatures, which otherwise have to be determined manually and at great expense.
For users of the aedifion cloud platform, there is another major advantage: it is interoperable and communicates easily with other applications and existing building technology via open interfaces. Plug-and-play, all components can be easily and transparently brought into the cloud.
In Germany alone, there are 2.7 million commercial buildings with around 1.35 billion square meters of net floor space. This translates into potential savings of more than 10 million tons of CO2 per year through the use of cloud platforms alone.
Investors and capital providers are also aware of the urgency of achieving climate targets. Climate protection requires immediate optimizations in construction and building operation. The aedifion cloud platform can play a key role in this: The company was able to raise 12 million euros from new and existing investors in a Series A financing round in January 2023. Investors in the round are Europe's leading climate-tech fund World Fund and the technology and investment platform BeyondBuild, with the participation of the family office of SAP's founding family Hopp. Further investors are Bauwens, Drees & Sommer and MOMENI Ventures. Existing investors BitStone Capital and Phoenix Contact Innovation Ventures are also investing again in the efficient optimization of building technology.
aedifion is now the market leader for intelligent building technology control in Germany and is now using the new capital to make smart buildings an active part of the energy system.
In order to become the market leader in Europe as well, the product range is currently being expanded. "Our software incorporates the best engineering knowledge on the market with more than 13 years of experience," says aedifion founder and CEO Johannes Fütterer. "Inefficiencies in operations are automatically detected on an ongoing basis, saving money and reducing CO2 emissions - all fully digital and scaled across all properties."
aedifion participates in several research projects funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Climate Protection (BMWK) at other universities and research institutions - including FU Berlin, University of Stuttgart and Fraunhofer ISE. Well-known companies such as Eon, Uniper and Züblin are also involved in the research projects.
