It’s a glimpse of the future that seems promising: after a cold winter‘s night, a heat pump generates warmth destined specifically for the kitchen and living room; at an office, only the workstations where people are actually working are lit; and an electric car is being charged in an optimized way that prioritizes photovoltaic energy from the roof. Measures like these bring us closer to the dream of climate-neutral private homes and large buildings. However, making this scenario a reality requires the individual devices involved to be interconnected in a comprehensive way – and lots of energy, of course, usually in the form of electricity. “We’re doubling or tripling our electricity requirements,” explains Dr. Severin Beucker, founder and partner of the Borderstep Institute for Innovation and Sustainability in Berlin. However, Beucker believes that increasing the energy efficiency of buildings is a very good response to this greater demand.
“Efficiency is the order of the day,” he affirms. This formerly niche topic has taken on a new significance in recent years due to the rise in energy prices. Meanwhile, there is the general need to rethink building use and energy consumption in light of climate change. “Overall, too little attention is being paid to the subject of efficiency in the energy transition,” says Beucker. The potential is huge, even with small adjustments in individual households. Every degree lower in room temperature results in energy savings of around six percent. Thanks to building automation, however, a lower temperature does not necessarily mean less comfort at home. Instead, this new technology facilitates the precise control of relevant appliances.