Smart Square

Smart Tools for Smart Buildings: Enhancing the intelligence of buildings in Europe

SmartSquare aims to develop and deliver tools to enable the promotion and establishment of intelligence assessment of buildings in Europe, through buildings Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI) scheme. Tools are going to be delivered by a cloud-based open platform for assessing the intelligence of buildings, addressing building designers, facility managers and building users. The Rate of Return of smart readiness improvements of buildings will be identified, on the grounds of existing CEN standards, enabling in this way the definition of smartness cost optimal building upgrades, as well as laying the grounds for the development and establishment of cost optimal SRI minimum requirements for new buildings. In addition, an SRI audit process will also be developed, with related protocols and procedures, acting as the forerunner of a standardized procedure. Smart² SRI certificates will be issued with the use of the open platform, following specific quality standards, enabling the visibility and trust to the SRI scheme.

Since SRI aspires to become the key rating tool for measuring the smartness of the built environment, high quality of SRI is a key prerequisite to reach out a wide audience of building owners and asset managers. In addition, the SRI is one of the rating confirmed by the EPBD4 to increase the renovation rate of existing building stock in Europe. To garantee a wide penetration of the SRI in the construction market, several challenges are to be addressed: 1) Develop calculation tools and standardized processes for on-site SRI audit 2) Spread access and knowledge of SRI among experts and citizens 3) Explore possible links between the SRI and other rating tools (e.g., the Energy Performance Certification – EPC; the digital building logbooks, etc.). SmartSquare provides a series of solutions: 1) A more effective and ambitious implementation of the provisions related to the SRI in national legislations, by promoting the SRI through the Smart² tool at national level and using the project “”SRI call center”” for the issuance of >3500 SRI ratings 2) A faster up-take of the SRI in the market, thanks to the set up of an online SRI FAQ, 60 virtual round table discussions with citizens and stakeholders, 48 SRI Days across Europe, one SRI virtual training centre, 1000 SRI auditors certified, 10000 buildings assessed by the Smart² tool 3) To reach about 20% of primary energy savings triggered by SmartSquare by the end of the project 4) Increase in investments in energy efficiency thanks to the comprehensive SRI audit procedure and training of auditors. Energy upgrade of 10000 properties, with projected estimation of investments equal to 37 M€.

Supervision of the Smart² platform Testing and validation of AI-solutions in line with the SRI Support to Exploitation and project innovation management Evaluation of SRI data integration into digital building logbook (DBL)