The pinnacle of community driven urban energy transition are Positive Energy Districts (PED). They improve energy efficiency, integrate local renewables and excess heat more effectively and enable interaction with the energy and non-energy sectors like mobility, ICT and industry. A crucial, and often neglected complication is that PEDs are in constant evolution. This is due to ever-evolving changes in their environment: social context, legislation, energy market, increased electric vehicles, etc. As such, there is a strong analogy with the theory of evolution. Although the DNA between PEDs varies, the implementation and evolution of different PEDs is not a process of chance: the environment determines the probability of success in the urban energy transition. The PEDvolution project paves the way for cross-sectoral integration of ever-evolving PEDs. This over a duration of three years, consisting of three consecutive phases: analyse, co-develop and demonstrate. European pioneers in PED conceptualisation, implementation and tool development will co-develop and implement seven interoperable solutions accommodating the constant evolution of PEDs: 1) PED Design and Planning Toolset, 2) PED Readiness Assessment, 3) Dynamic Decision Support Guideline for PED Development, 4) PED Energy Manager, 5) Data Exchange, Integration and Interoperability Platform, 6) PED Business Models, 7) Social Innovation tool. These PEDvolution solutions will evaluate and improve the ‘PED Readiness Level’ according to the four genes of the PED genotype: social, technology, interoperability, and market. These are influenced by their interaction within the PED and its environment (PED phenotype). At least six real-life PEDs across Europe, will provide a demonstration and validation environment for the solutions, paving the way for replication, upscaling and mainstreaming.

The aim of the oPEN Lab is to identify replicable, commercially viable solution packages enabling the achievement of positive energy neighbourhoods within existing urban contexts that are seamlessly integrated into the local energy system as an active micro-energy hub, and to test these technologies and package as an integrated solution at neighbourhood scale. Three open innovation living labs in the cities of Genk (BE), Pamplona (ES) and Tartu (EE) will test combinations of different close-to-market ready technologies and services and study their performance as a unique operating system. Focus is on demonstrating innovations in an integrated approach combining sustainable design tailored to the local context, seamless industrial renovation workflows, renewable energy generation combined with energy storage systems, urban service facilities and smart operation, life cycle thinking and circularity, and this across the whole value chain, targeting the whole life cycle of the building and its neighbourhood, in view of scaling up and wide replication. A user driven and participatory approach with the neighbourhood?s community will be rolled out for a holistic and positive energy vision for the neighbourhood, going beyond citizen awareness raising activities. oPEN Lab is a unique collaboration aligned with the Open Innovation quadruple helix model where a) industry (SMEs, large companies, start-ups and scale-ups in both construction and energy value chains), b) government (local public administration), c) academia/RTOs and d) civil participants (end users, NGOs) work together to co-create and drive structural changes that will result in high TRL levels, with great focus on exploitation of results and wide replication.

The detailed knowledge of building stock features and performances has a potential positive disruptive effect on the ability of the EC to design effective policies targeting buildings in view of the 2050 strategy and the European Green Deal. Given the lack of comprehensive and reliable data on the EU building stock, BuiltHub will develop a structured and inclusive data collection approach, as well as an easy to access & use datahub, in the shape of a structured web-based platform (IT infrastructure, analytics and user-friendly dashboard), which will be fed into thanks to a benefits-based engagement strategy targeted to data and metadata providers, as well as simple users. The mentioned benefits-based engagement strategy will be implemented by developing added value information services tailored to lead-users of the platform and other main beneficiaries (end-users). The main premise behind the BuiltHub community building proposal is that data owners will be willing to feed-in data/information to the BuiltHub platform, in exchange for the added value information/knowledge that will be put out by the platform through its operation. In addition, “multipliers” will disseminate the BuiltHub achievements for enlarging the related community. The BuiltHub consortium will also develop different data processes and service schemes to cover possible users, based on their needs and potential use of data & analytics, as well as the benefits they could enjoy from cooperating with BuiltHub. The project aims to build upon the building stock observatory database and related analytics for making the data flow easier, resilient and safe. However, the BuiltHub consortium is also ready for a development approach which stands on its own, as a back-up plan. It also aims to work in close collaboration with mirror and sister projects and in particular B4E-6 MATRYCS by sharing data collection approach and a standard definition of each elements at different level (country to single building).

iBROAD intends to explore, design, develop and demonstrate the concept of individual building renovation roadmaps (iBROAD), as a tool outlining deep step-by-step renovation plans with customised recommendations for individual buildings (iBROAD-Plan), combined with a repository of building-related information (logbook, iBROAD- Log). The iBROAD approach is an evolution of EPC and energy audit systems, aiming to become a real driver for renovation. The project will analyse and build upon relevant examples in Germany, France and Flanders, to identify the elements, develop an integrated concept, and produce modular tools, suitable for differing national conditions. The iBROAD innovative concept and tools will be tested in Bulgaria, Poland, Portugal and Germany.Field testing will follow auditor training, and will provide auditor and user experience feedback as input to the feasibility and replicability analyses of the model to other building typologies and EU MS. Stakeholder engagement will be sought from the start at national (Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Germany, Greece, Poland, Portugal and Sweden) and EU levels, for maximum impact. Throughout the project, communication activities will ensure the concept’s broad dissemination and awareness. iBROAD targets residential buildings, with a focus on single-family and small multifamily houses. iBROAD’s implementation, beyond the project duration, will strongly support building owners in step-by-step deep renovation, while avoiding lock-in effects. iBROAD-Plan and iBROAD-Log are expected to empower energy auditors and end-users with knowledge and experience of deep renovation in individual buildings, and to provide public authorities with real-life studies and analysis supporting deep renovation, both for individual buildings and as a long-term national strategy, increasing the renovation rate and depth across the EU.

re-MODULEES aims at the creation of an EU-wide “umbrella” framework for EE in existing residential buildings based on the generation of standard modules for the retrofit market activation and up-take. Modularity is to be intended as multi-level: it regards the “breakdown” of the overall retrofit process into standardized segments; and multi-target: it regards their customization according to regional climatic, building, socio-economic and market conditions, in order to shape more effective tools and approaches through which to maximise cost-optimality, positive spillovers and impact. This framework is based on clustering of efforts and evidences, and would allow shaping cross-regional policies, and generating wider homogeneous, integrated and facilitated retrofitting market areas. For this reason, re-MODULEES aims to be a strategic capitalization project which, by leveraging on the wide background of several H2020 projects (as well as from other EU programs), will join and combine knowledge, approaches and tools already available within its clear modular framework, so to optimize their uptake on local markets.