Berlin, 30 September. With around 150 participants, including guests from France, Italy, Great Britain and the Netherlands, the Net Zero Now! 2022 event showed that serial retrofitting is becoming increasingly important within the industry.
In the NetZero marketplace, housing companies presented their property portfolios which are to be renovated by 2045, while the total solution providers presented what capabilities they would have available by then, and the component manufacturers showcased their innovative solutions. The topics covered in the six workshops included themes that play a central role in the move from pilot projects to portfolio-wide projects: CO2 roadmaps, contract design, the role of architects and planners, networks and framework conditions, and recyclability.
The frontrunners in terms of completed and ‘under construction’ projects were highlighted and celebrated as "Net Zero Heroes". Exciting topics, useful background knowledge, new innovations and promising contacts – according to the participants it was this mixture that made the Net Zero Now! 2022 annual event an all-round success for exchange on both a professional and personal level.
Big players create new market dynamics
In 2019, the volume deal laid the foundation for the serial retrofit market in Germany. A lot has happened since then: four pilot projects have been completed, nine are under construction, and 51 more are in development. The network has grown to 85 housing providers, 16 total solution providers and 85 innovative component manufacturers.
Big players like Saint-Gobain have entered the serial retrofit market. Completely new forms of cooperation are also developing. In April, the German housing group LEG and the Austrian construction group Rhomberg founded a joint venture for serial renovation with Renowate. At the beginning of August, a real-life laboratory began in Mönchengladbach , in which B&O, ecoworks, Fischbach and Saint-Gobain are testing different serial retrofit approaches for the mass market.
Growing market with attractive business opportunities
The next major milestone in market development has now been reached – the leap from pilot projects to portfolio-wide projects. By 2026, GEWOBAU Erlangen aims to serially retrofit 6,000 residential units. Other housing groups are in the process of successively transferring the knowledge gained in the pilot projects to the retrofitting of larger property portfolios. At the same time, the construction side will also significantly expand its capabilities.
Innovative component manufacturers provide new impetus with forward-looking products. A fast-growing market has emerged within three years, opening up attractive business opportunities along the entire value chain. International inquiries, such as that from the Tokyo City Authorities, show that the concept of serial retrofitting is receiving great interest worldwide.