European Green Deal: Loxone as a holistic energy management system

“Climate change and environmental degradation are existential threats to Europe and the world.” The European Green Deal is intended to help stop them. “The EU can and must take a leadership role in this by initiating a profound transformation of its own economy and society in order to achieve climate neutrality.” (Quotes: European Union)

What is the aim of the European Green Deal?

With the European Green Deal, the EU has committed to reducing net greenhouse emissions by at least 55% by 2033 (compared to 1990) and to zero by 2050. This would make Europe the first continent to be climate neutral.

Info: Net zero means that anyone who emits, for example, one ton of CO2 within a year must ensure that one ton of CO2 is withdrawn from the atmosphere at the same time – e.g. through reforestation. So, this does not mean that no more greenhouse gases may be emitted. To achieve this goal, around 1.8 trillion euros are to be invested by 2027.

What measures are included in the European Green Deal?

The European Green Deal comprises a wide range of measures that can be divided into a total of eight main categories: climate, energy, agriculture, industry, environment and oceans, transport, finance and regional development as well as research and innovation. The individual categories each contain different strategies for achieving goals.

The importance of home & building automation for the Green Deal

In the area of “Energy”, the focus is, among other things, on improving the “overall energy efficiency of our buildings”.

This aspect is particularly important as more than 75% of the EU’s greenhouse emissions are attributable to the generation and consumption of energy, and buildings account for about 40% of energy consumption.

As the world’s only holistic system, home and building automation from Loxone can make a significant contribution to increasing the energy efficiency of a building and saving energy. Regardless of whether it is a smart home, residential building or commercial property.

Loxone – the world’s only holistic system

Loxone connects all components in the intelligent building, similar to the human nervous system. All strands run together to the central control – the Miniserver.

Numerous open interfaces make the system infinitely flexible. This enables a globally unique, holistic energy management and opens up numerous energy saving potentials – also in terms of the European Green Deal

Smart energy management

Smart energy management is intended to increase the energy efficiency of a building in order to sustainably reduce energy consumption. The focus is primarily on increasing self-consumption – i.e. the optimal use of self-produced energy, e.g. from a PV system.

Loxone –  an open system

Network, Modbus RTU / TCP, EEBus, RS485 and many more: Thanks to the numerous open interfaces, all components relevant for self-consumption optimization that have a suitable interface can be integrated into the intelligent energy management of Loxone. Regardless of whether it is a PV system, heat pump, battery storage system, …

But much more is possible: (almost) any consumer can be integrated into the system. In combination with weather forecasts, detailed statistics and real-time monitoring, the world’s most powerful energy management system is created.

Integration of the PV plants
Renewable energies are a central instrument of the Green Deal. By integrating the PV system into the home and building automation, it becomes the most important part of efficient energy management. The miniserver takes over the intelligent distribution of solar energy depending on production, demand and prioritization. Always with the aim of increasing self-consumption.

Practical example: Integration of a 97kWp system >>

Integration of energy storage
Batteries and the like store surplus solar energy instead of feeding it into the grid. In addition to self-consumption, this also increases independence from the public power grid.

Example: Integration of VARTA energy storage systems >>

Integration of heating & Co.
Heat pumps, hot water boilers and the like can be used as thermal buffer storage by preparing hot water exactly when there is an excess of solar energy.

Integration of the electric car
The Green Deal also focuses on the “strategy for sustainable and intelligent mobility”. If possible, an e-car should be charged with its own solar energy. The integration of the respective inverter as well as the wallbox makes it possible to store logics, start or pause the charging process, define the charging current and much more.

Integration of any consumer
Any consumer that has a suitable interface can be integrated into the Loxone system – and thus into the intelligent energy management.

Example: Integration of Home Connect enabled devices >>

Tip: Even “stupid” devices that do not have an interface, such as the battery charger of an e-bike, can be integrated via a switched socket.

Consideration of weather forecasts
The Miniserver not only takes production, demand and prioritization into account when distributing solar energy – the system can also look into the future. For example, the charging process for the electric car is delayed if it is currently raining but sunshine is forecast in an hour. Of course, only if the car is not urgently needed.

Comprehensive monitoring and statistics
Production, grid purchases, battery storage and much more. All relevant data of the intelligent energy management system is visualized in the Loxone app and can be viewed at any time and from any location.

Individual, detailed statistics provide helpful information and make it possible to uncover further energy saving potentials, to further increase energy efficiency and thus to achieve the goals of the Green Deal.

Saving Energy

Intelligent energy management can make a significant contribution to increasing  the “overall energy efficiency of our buildings” in the sense of the Green Deal.

However, it is even better not to need the energy in the first place. Loxone offers a wide range of options with which the energy consumption in the building can be reduced.

Sustainable Products

“Improving energy efficiency and eco-design of products” is another key strategy to achieve the objectives of the Green Deal.

A goal that perfectly matches our own requirements: We attach great importance to quality and do not develop “disposable products”. All Loxone products are designed to last a lifetime.

That is why we develop and manufacture our products ourselves – in the heart of Europe. In addition to high quality, attractive design and innovative product properties, we pay great attention to the low energy consumption of our components.

We also pay close attention to sustainability when building the Loxone Campus – Europe’s center of building automation. For example, the campus will have a huge 600 kWp solar system, 78% of the total area will consist of green spaces in the form of green roofs, parks and courtyards and much more.