Together to the top

CO2 roadmap gives grip on sustainability of property portfolio

The energy transition, the improvement and sustainability of our housing stock and the transition to a circular economy have a huge impact not only on the construction and installation industry, but also on property owners such as housing corporations. "We are at the foot of a mountain full of changes, standards and objectives, which we must overcome together," knows Ton Wolters, business advisor at Breman Installation Group's Energy Transition Knowledge Center. "Our Knowledge Center has the right knowledge, tools and position to support this. From our base camp we take everyone to the top: data-driven sustainability choices with a perspective of 15 years of regret-free solutions." 

With the CO2 Roadmap program, the Breman Knowledge Center Energy Transition helps property owners such as housing corporations to get a grip on making their entire property portfolio more sustainable. "In practice, we see that (too) many corporations still look at their projects with tunnel vision," says Wolters. "The large sustainability task is too big a mountain for them. That's why we use this mountain as a metaphor. Because together we can climb the mountain and make the energy transition a success. With the CO2 Roadmap program, we offer clear insight into how real estate relates to the standards and objectives of the Climate Agreement. Using data such as the complex strategy, insulation value and Transition Vision Heat and based on current knowledge and standards, we advise strategic, regret-free and concrete initiatives for the next 15 years. Initiatives that benefit not only our clients, but also their tenants, the surrounding area and our environment."

Integrated and long-term approach

In preparing the CO2 Roadmap, the Breman Energy Transition Knowledge Center not only has an eye for the installations, but also for the building envelope. "By approaching the property envelope integrally and with a 15-year perspective, all relevant parties can budget early and reserve capacity and products," Wolters said. "As a result, market challenges such as staff shortages, capacity shortages and material scarcity are much less of an issue and the sustainability train stays on steam."

Route to the summit

The basis of the CO2 Roadmap program is approximately 6 to 8 sessions, bringing together a permanent team of committed and dedicated relevant stakeholders in a solid base camp:

1: Workshop / Forming Base Camp: the purpose of this workshop is to create awareness: what is the task at hand? What are the advantages of an integrated (long-term) approach and what is the complex strategy?

2: Data retrieval and linking: Together with the corporation, the Breman Knowledge Center Energy Transition maps the current state of the property. What data is already available about, for example, energy labels, maintenance schedules and replacement times? And where is data enrichment needed?

3: Discuss the Heat Transition Vision with municipalities: What sustainable energy sources will be installed in the district in the future, with a view to a natural gas-free and CO2-neutral built environment? And what policy fits this? How well insulated is the housing stock already?

4: Policy choices: for each potential energy source or solution direction, a policy is established that is fully aligned with the property owner's vision and budget.

5: Planning: then the chosen strategies and planning are coordinated with the relevant network operators.

6: Integrated Overview: planned projects are laid along the basic planning for boiler replacements, for example, to make the right choices between planned and project-based replacements.

7: The multi-year maintenance budget: the Breman Knowledge Center Energy Transition fills the multi-year maintenance budget (MJOB) with appropriate key figures per solution direction.

8: Dashboard: it also provides a complete dashboard as an end product. With this, housing associations can easily track their sustainability efforts over the next few years and make adjustments if necessary. This provides a clear overview and makes the results of all efforts transparent.

The CO2 Roadmap program is currently being rolled out and is already enjoying great interest. Especially because of the customer-oriented and data-driven approach combined with the extensive practical experience of Breman Installation Group. Housing corporations also benefit from a nice side benefit: enrichment, analysis and correction of the available data and strategic conversations.