NEWS A
Shopping centres can reduce energy costs by 75% through retrofitting and AI
ccording to a recent study, retail properties remain understudied despite their contribution to global emissions. A big part of such properties is shopping malls, which are among the largest energy consumers due to their significant size, extended operating hours, and varied energy demands. Energy experts from Exergio, a company that develops AI-based tools for energy
efficiency in commercial buildings, believe that by integrating AI-based solutions in shopping centres, they can reduce energy waste by as much as 29%. Shopping centres have extensive energy requirements that are necessary to optimise and maintain temperatures to power lighting and equipment. It makes the decarbonisation of these properties problematic due to their operational requirements and multifunctional layouts. Diverse businesses like restaurants with high heating and cooling needs, retail stores with extended lighting hours, and medical or recreational spaces requiring specialized systems require a more complex approach to cutting energy waste. “These centres house diverse energy systems, including inefficient HVAC units running constantly, outdated equipment drawing excessive power, and unnecessary lighting in unoccupied areas like storage rooms, restrooms, or back-of-house corridors that are not frequently accessed by shoppers. These inefficiencies, paired with a lack of insulation and water heating system issues, collectively lead to energy waste,” explained Donatas Karčiauskas, chief executive of Exergio. Out of the all existing shopping malls across Europe, only 4% undergo renovation annually. However, retrofitting presents an opportunity for energy savings. Research indicates that energy efficiency in shopping malls can improve by up to 75% with major retrofits, incorporating modernised systems and energy-saving technologies. “Retrofitting is a viable choice that could help shopping centres cut down energy waste, but it should be more complex and include AI. Many owners of the centres simply cannot afford to do deep renovations,” added Karčiauskas. “It is still possible to achieve desirable results by integrating digital and AI-driven systems even without renovation and achieve results up to 10 times faster. AI can process thousands of data points across HVAC, lighting, and other systems to optimize operations holistically. Doing this manually is next to impossible.”
Exergio’s solution has already helped the shopping center Ozas in Lithuania to transform its
energy management. Exergio integrated advanced systems like Building Management System (BMS) analysis and machine learning to control HVAC in real-time. It helped to monitor equipment more precisely and improved algorithm functionality. “The timeline to meet emission targets is getting closer, and digital solutions offer a way to accelerate progress. If the existing shopping malls integrate AI-based digital tools into their energy management systems, they can achieve sustainability targets faster. Thus, shopping malls can achieve several objectives: save on electricity bills, increase the value of the property, and improve visitors’ experience,” concluded Karčiauskas.
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Ideal Heating joins global consortium to accelerate adoption of heat pumps
deal Heating has joined a major global partnership launched to drive adoption of clean energy technologies, including heat pumps. The Mercury Consortium is starting with more than two dozen companies from across the global energy sector, all aligned on the low carbon transition and future of
energy security.
As a Founding Member of the consortium, Ideal Heating will explore how its heat pumps interact with other energy devices and smart technologies in the home and how they can work better with the electricity grid. By simplifying communication with the broader energy ecosystem, Ideal’s heat pumps can work even more efficiently, collecting smart data to run at the best times and helping customers save money.
That means customers will be able to access cheaper, flexible electricity tariffs and save on their electricity bills. Ideal joins leading organisations including EDF, E.ON, Octopus Energy, and Amazon Web Services as Founding Members of the consortium.
“Being part of the Mercury Consortium enables us to work with the wider industry to ensure our products work intelligently with energy providers, helping customers save money and heat their homes efficiently.” The Mercury Consortium is managed by non-profit research and development organisation EPRI, with a focus on clean energy technologies, such as heat pumps, EV chargers, solar panels and smart thermostats.
The consortium will look at how all these leading technologies can integrate and communicate with each other to make electricity grids more resilient and efficient to operate.
Ideal Heating Senior Product Manager Andy Farquhar said: “Heat pump technologies give customers a new opportunity to access cheaper, flexible electricity tariffs, while comfortably heating their homes. “We want our customers to be front and centre of product development and innovation, so they can benefit from adopting low carbon technologies and supporting the drive to net zero.
Founding Members of the consortium include utility
providers, manufacturers, technology providers and industry regulators. Ideal’s membership underlines its role as a UK leader in the heat pump sector.
Ideal Heating is part of the UK operations of Groupe Atlantic, which has a long-standing history of manufacturing heat pumps and is a market leader in many countries across the world in this field.
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Read the latest at:
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Jan25.indd 1
11/12/24 16:40 BUILDING SERVICES & ENVIRONMENTAL ENGINEER JANUARY 2025 5
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