Integrated Roof Wind Energy System

Project Information

IRWES

Grant agreement ID: 666624

DOI

10.3030/666624

Project closed

EC signature date 17 April 2015

Start date 1 April 2015

End date 31 March 2017

Funded under

• SOCIETAL CHALLENGES - Secure, clean and efficient energy

Total cost

€ 2 423 400,00

EU contribution

€ 1 696 380,00

Coordinated by

IBIS POWER BV
Netherlands

Periodic Reporting for period 2 - IRWES (Integrated Roof Wind Energy System)

Reporting period: 2016-04-01 to 2017-03-31

Summary of the context and overall objectives of the project

In April 2015, under the H2020 SME Instrument Programme, the Consortium formed by IBIS Power and Pontis Engineering were granted 1.7M€ to technically and market develop a unique integrated wind and sun roof energy system. The IRWES Project, receiving a score of 14.35 out of 15.00 from the European Commission, is finalized 2 years later. The energy system, named PowerNEST, is an innovative solution to be applied on high rises in urban and coastal areas being able to generate enough energy providing electricity for up to 10 levels buildings. The overall objectives of the Project were outlined in 8 Work Packages to prepare the PowerNEST mass-market launch, positioning it as a game changing solution on the European market.

Work performed from the beginning of the project to the end of the period covered by the report and main results achieved so far

During the first year of the Project, the Consortium designed, produced and installed a Demonstrator, which has been operating since April 2016 in the port of Eemshaven, The Netherlands. This first unit has validated the potentials of wind energy production performance and the Computational Fluid Dynamics prediction models that were developed at IBIS. In addition, the structural behavior under all weather conditions was measured, and for this reason the roof did not include solar panels yet.
During the second year, the measurements were validated by a 3rd party and noise and vibration tests were performed on the unit to answer the most recurring question from customers. A solid pipeline of customers has been established, but challenging roadblocks have been identified in the sales process. Securing permits for the installation has proven to be the major issue in the Netherlands. Thanks to the knowledge gained after the Demonstrator and project preparations, the Consortium developed a complete mass production design and aligned the suppliers. PowerNEST is commercially launched, the first contract is signed, collaboration agreements established, and several projects under preparation. IBIS Power filed a new patent in June 2016 and presented a research paper during the last edition of the Torque Conference in Munich, Germany.

Progress beyond the state of the art and expected potential impact (including the socio-economic impact and the wider societal implications of the project so far)

Using innovative design principles, PowerNEST is the only solution effectively combining solar and wind energy sources to make up to 10 level building energy neutral in urban and coastal areas. This has not only been a technological breakthrough, but certainly also opens up a new and up to now unreachable market of thousands of high rises in Europe. This decentralized solution not only contributes highly to reduce the carbon footprint of buildings, but the system also drives economic growth in all parts of the value chain from manufacturing to installation and maintenance. The Demonstrator Opening Event attracted much media attention sharing the news in online and offline media channels. PowerNEST has been introduced in several markets were the wind and sun conditions are suitable (UK, Denmark, Belgium, Germany, Spain, The Netherlands and United Arab Emirates), creating an impact in its industrial, business and scientific communities.

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