The real estate development sector will soon benefit from a tool that simplifies the process of decarbonizing buildings by providing clear guidance and access to financing.
Last week, the Munich-based Siemens Financial Services launched a cloud-based tool to help address the overwhelming complexity of decarbonizing buildings and the financing needed for net-zero emissions.
The Decarbonization Business Optimizer is a free digital web tool that removes the initial knowledge barrier and uncovers more efficient strategies to help decarbonize a company’s facilities.
The tool leverages data from relevant governmental agencies, including the US Department of Energy, the Environmental Protection Agency and the DOE’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory.
Fixing the Climate Wagon
“Companies, specifically those in the supply chain, are increasingly asked to report their carbon footprint to their customers — yet many do not know where to begin,” said Anthony Casciano, CEO and president of Siemens Financial Services, Inc., in a statement.
“The DBO addresses these barriers by taking action and puts companies of all sizes, and at all stages, in a better position to create long-term value, accelerating participation in the transition to net-zero emissions.”
The DBO generates cost-effective decarbonization scenarios for each facility using the address, size, and type. The estimated carbon footprint calculated for the facility and the energy cost are based on data relevant to its geographic location, enabling a more accurate estimate than using country-wide averages.
The tool also considers site-specific data, such as the annual energy use or load profile, if available, to generate an even more accurate result.
“A lack of data sometimes can deter companies from initiating a sustainability strategy,” said Lee Evangelakos from American Industrial Partners.
“As an initial tester, we found that the DBO tool is a great way to get started in estimating facility footprints. The tool enables industrial businesses to think through the building blocks of their emissions profiles and how they could begin to take action towards decarbonization.”
Devil in the details
Users can discover and choose a combination of generation and storage technologies that makes the most sense for their site, such as solar panels, combined heat and power, thermal energy storage, battery storage and more.
Customized decarbonization scenarios can also be generated based on a desire for specific technologies, resilience to grid outages, or a maximum budget, enabling data-driven decision-making. The tool also summarizes the estimated return on investment.
“Trusted data sets coupled with credible modeling and analysis tools are vital in the complex decision-making process to achieve a clean energy future,” said Roderick Jackson, laboratory program manager for Building Technologies at NREL, in the statement.
“NREL-developed tools are built to be leveraged this way—including ComStock, REopt, and our Annual Technology Baseline framework. It’s great to see that in practice.”
SFS developed the tool with Siemens Technology, the company’s central R&D department. The tool is built on AWS, utilizing server-less architecture to lower its workload carbon footprint by allowing the DBO to operate only when needed rather than running constantly.
Silver Lining in the cloud
A recent study estimates AWS’s infrastructure is up to 4.1 times more efficient than on-premises. When workloads are optimized on AWS, the associated carbon footprint can be reduced by up to 99 percent.
The tool also leverages public data made available through the Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative to help estimate the thermal properties of materials in buildings.
ASDI works with sustainability-focused government agencies to host and deploy key datasets on the AWS Cloud, including weather observations and forecasts, climate projection data, satellite imagery, hydrological data, air quality data, and ocean forecast data.
“At AWS, we are committed to helping our customers build a more sustainable future,” said Chris Walker, Director of Sustainability for AWS.
“This is a shared goal with Siemens and all our customers. We also provide knowledge and tools, such as Amazon Sustainability Data Initiative, for organizations of all sizes, and across all sectors, to build and implement solutions like DBO that support their sustainability goals.”
Looking ahead, SFS will add a vehicle fleet analyzer to assist companies with fleet electrification and a climate resiliency feature to help identify a site’s ability to withstand extreme weather.
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