EDIH-EBE: European Digital Innovation Hub Energy in the Built Environment

Your access to a digital transformation of energy applications in construction

Consortium:: 

• Project partners: Embuild Vlaanderen in collaboration with Techlink and Embuild Limburg, EnergyVille, Flux50, Imec, KU Leuven, T2-campus in collaboration with SyntraPXL, UHasselt, VDAB, and VITO.
• Supported by: Enterprise Europe Network Vlaanderen, IncubaThor, Thor Park, Vlaams Supercomputer Centrum (VSC), and Voka-Vlaams netwerk van ondernemingen. 

Funded by:  DIGITALEUROPE, NUHMA / MyCSN, Provincie Limburg (België), and Stad Genk.

Digitalisation is both inevitable and crucial for the competitiveness and sustainability of the Flemish economy. Many companies and public sector organisations working around energy applications in construction are still unaware of all the opportunities offered by further digitalisation.

Yet, the use of advanced digital technologies is essential to improve products, processes, and services. Furthermore, the utilisation of digital tools accelerates energy efficiency for the construction and renovation of buildings and neighbourhoods. This will eventually have a significant impact on the energy consumption of Flemish homes and will increase the ease of use of new technologies for residents.

To accelerate this digital transformation, a central digital and physical access point was established at Thor Park in Genk: European Digital Innovation Hub Energy in the Built Environment (EDIH-EBE). The EDIH-EBE offers various services that increase the digital knowledge and skills of Flemish companies and organisations, giving them a competitive edge. The focus here is on the intersection between construction, energy, and ICT . 

EDIH-EBE offers an accessible and centralised system of expertise and support. All the services needed to achieve a digital transformation can be found online at www.edih-ebe.eu and physically at Thor Park. This approach simplifies digital transformation and ensures a successful transition towards digitalisation

Companies and organisations looking to prepare themselves for a digital future can turn to EDIH-EBE with their questions. This one-stop hub brings together various actors from the construction and energy sectors and ensures maximum cross-fertilisation between these partners. This collaboration produces key services, such as: 

• training, courses, job placement, and internships,
• testing, experimentation, and validation in small demonstrations in digital, physical, and living labs,
• tailor-made expert panels for discussion and advice,
• investment support,
• events that bring the ecosystem together with a focus on innovation, and
• international collaboration.

Moreover, many of these services are offered for free for SMEs, or at different conditions for larger companies, thanks to the support from the Digital Europe Programme, the implementing partners, and the co-financiers: the province of Limburg, the city of Genk, Limburg climate company Nuhma, and MyCSN and the implementing partners.