Focus on Net Zero

A DATA-CENTRIC APPROACH

Accurate, live and historical sensor monitoring and reporting

The Futures Close test homes are kitted out with sensors and various other devices that monitor factors including: temperature, motion, moisture and gas and electricity use. This enables accurate live and historical sensor monitoring and reporting, and storage of approximately 1800 data points. While the data streams and archives are discoverable and accessible by partners to generate insights, we retain control on data, who, when and why it is shared with to ensure Intellectual Property Rights protection.

Facts about the NeRV research
properties:

  • All archetypes were built using the materials and technologies of their day and together represent circa 20m of the UK’s housing stock.
  • The homes have been built and furnished to enable energy saving and net zero technologies to be tested in different house types.
  • This real-world setting is invaluable, as the performance of technologies in actual homes can be different to that predicted in the lab.
  • This test bed allows the optimal heating systems, controls, fabric upgrades and energy efficiency solutions to be identified for each
    housing type, and enable businesses to test and refine their technologies before putting them on the market.
  • We worked with the Building Research Establishment (BRE) to prepare an energy baseline for the homes, which involved air permeability testing, U-Value testing and desk-based SAP analysis.
Interior of NERV home - living room
Northern Gas team visiting NERV village