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Description
Alfa Simvouli is a consulting firm, active in system integration, software development, ERP – CRM technology integration and networking.
With a growing need for increasing the energy efficiency in the residential sector; the European smart thermostat market is set to boom in the next few years. The main factors driving the need for smart thermostat are the convenience, energy conservation, energy tracking, and need for an increase in potential savings.
Caloric is a R&D project including prototype. The project consists in the development of hot water centric CALORIC Smart Thermostat (CST) that calibrates radiator loads for a tighter control or residential heating; it is a continuation of the Caloric project developed by the Greek company Lightheat under HORIZON2020. The proposed solution will feature 3 innovative elements (the heating power adjustment, the heating problem detection, and the heating bill awareness).
The project will result in the development and commercialization of CALORIC Smart Thermostat (CST) and bring it from TRL7 to TRL8, by 2021, 8 jobs will be created and a significant reduction in fuel consumption in the buildings were they are installed. Additionally, it will enhance the competitiveness of the company in the beneficiary country and increase the revenues.
Summary of project results
The project consisted in developing a green innovation solution, a smart thermostat, which will bring environmental benefits to both the end-users and society at large, and provide households cheaper heating bills. The proposed solution features 3 innovative elements which distinguishes it from other similar products in the market:
- the heating power adjustment (it controls not only the indoor temperature but also the heating power of the radiators, giving the space the exact energy it needs without overheating it);
- the heating problem detection (it detects malfunction in the heating system or inadequate insulation of the building);
- the heating bill awareness (it gives a clear indication to the users of the heating consumption and the ability to anticipate the heating bill and adjust it to the available budget.
The R&D activiites included the development of the cloud service, of the mobile application, the thermostat software, and the thermostat electronic design.
More prototypes than expected (included in the project output) were manufactured.
The promoter manufactured 44 prototype smart thermostats (more than double than initially expected) which were installed in prospective users houses for testing the interface. With regard to the commercialisation of the thermostat, the promoter will offer the thermostat through their eshop, but they will also use distributors such as Wall + Volt (they have 60 shops around Greece) through their new division Smartwatt. The project will lead to cheaper heating bills for households and more effective heating system, and as a result a reduction of CO2 and energy consumption.