Green Data Spaces

Property managers navigating the transition to sustainable energy sources face a complex balancing act. They must meet legislative compliance while maintaining cost-effective, efficient building operations — all while extracting maximum value from their data to optimise sustainability efforts.

Currently, building managers have to deal with siloed vertical solutions, connecting each property individually with various suppliers, such as solar panels and storage batteries, heating and cooling systems, security and facility management. Each supplier guards their data closely, leaving managers without the comprehensive insights needed for optimal decision-making. When suppliers need to be changed, the entire process starts from scratch.

TNO's GDS offers a transformative alternative: a horizontal solution that connects all suppliers and properties into a unified, standardised ecosystem. Both service providers and buildings need to connect only once. This future-proof solution provides the data privacy and control managers demand, while revealing optimal savings and efficiency opportunities.

This solution brings together the full spectrum of service providers — building managers, energy management systems, equipment and technology providers, maintenance services, and renewable energy suppliers. Managers operate from a single dashboard, sharing only relevant data with each supplier while maintaining complete control. Adding new suppliers becomes straightforward and streamlined.

AI tools enable buildings to operate at peak efficiency, capitalise on energy suppliers' flexible pricing, and identify previously hidden savings opportunities. On average, building managers can easily achieve 20% energy cost savings in their first year within a GDS, with further optimisations driving additional savings over time.

At their core, data spaces are agreements between multiple partner organisations to share data securely and effectively. Through robust governance, equitable business models, and careful curation, data spaces collect and organise comprehensive data that enhances decision-making, ensures sustainable long-term management, and unlocks new growth opportunities. All while ensuring the right levels of privacy and data protection.

Within GDS, AI and other technologies reveal innovative solutions and cost-saving opportunities that would otherwise remain hidden. As more partners join GDS, the solution becomes increasingly powerful and beneficial. The open, standardised architecture ensures future-proofing and adaptability to evolving technologies and up-and-coming new players.

GDS is ideally suited for larger properties like offices, schools, and government facilities — buildings that consume substantial amounts of often-wasted energy. Every partner in the ecosystem benefits from both the technology and the data it generates.

Building managers gain far more than significant energy cost savings. They make better-informed sustainability decisions, track improvements over time, anticipate maintenance needs, and generate clear – and even automated – reporting for regulatory compliance. Every building improvement delivers maximum energy, time, and cost savings.

For suppliers and partners, connecting to GDS once provides access to data from all buildings they serve. The system's semantic interoperability means definitions and data align from the outset, eliminating compatibility issues. GDS enables integrated remote management, early detection of installation defects, and proactive problem-solving.

Building tenants enjoy the ultimate benefit: comfortable, well-maintained spaces with reduced disruptions and fewer unexpected breakdowns.

Beyond individual buildings, GDS accelerates the broader energy transition by optimising grid usage and reducing waste. The platform brings partners together to collect essential data, ensuring the right improvements happen at the right time and in the right way.

TNO is currently proving the concept for GDS, building  the technical infrastructure and business model, and launching the first customer group of building and service providers. The first TNO building has already been connected. In this early stage, office buildings provide the optimal environment in which to prove the system’s value and potential, and optimise interfaces to ensure fully customisable and user-friendly dashboards.

In the coming period, TNO aims to expand the system to include up to about 50 additional buildings and their suppliers throughout the Netherlands, with international expansion planned for the future.

Interested in learning more about Green Data Spaces, investing in the technology, or joining the initiative? Get in touch today.