Business model innovation for the energy management of building networks in smart cities
In recent years, buildings have been equipped with building and automation control systems (BACS) that provide a reliable active energy efficiency measure for reducing energy consumption. These advanced systems allow to use and regulate technological implants in the best possible way in response to change in the external environmental conditions, ensuring at the same time the highest comfort for the building’s occupants. Due to the need of both evidence and practical applications in this field, a simulator was developed capable of modelling and quantifying the main technical-economic variables to examine potential impacts of several ‘building network management’ scenario types, according to different scales and application areas. This simulator shows the economic assessment for the implementation of BACS for the management of a network of buildings, according to the user’s choices. The purpose of this study is to present some detailed scenario analyses that evaluate the economic convenience of BACS interventions within a network of buildings, in a smart city context. The simulator was tested through the results obtained in the Smart Village Project carried out by ENEA, in Italy. Our findings allow to assess how the convenience of an investment in automation, control and monitoring systems differs by varying the complexity of the installed automation network, to determine the optimal solution from a technical-economic point of view.