domOS · Project

Smart Building Operating System That Cuts Heating Costs and Unlocks Grid Flexibility

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Most buildings are "dumb" — they waste energy because their heating, appliances, and sensors don't talk to each other. domOS built a kind of operating system for buildings that connects all smart devices through one secure platform, regardless of who made them. Think of it like giving your building a brain that automatically adjusts heating, tracks energy use, and even lets the building help balance the electricity or district heating grid. They tested this across 5 real buildings in Switzerland, France, and Denmark.

By the numbers

Real-world demonstration sites across Europe

Consortium partners

Countries represented in consortium

73%

Industry ratio in consortium

EUR 4,092,575

EU contribution to project

Total project deliverables

SME partners in consortium

The business problem

What needed solving

Most existing buildings waste energy because their heating systems, sensors, and smart devices operate in silos with no coordination. Building owners lack real-time visibility into energy consumption and cannot participate in grid flexibility programs. Deep renovation is expensive and slow — property managers need a faster, lower-cost way to make buildings smarter and cut heating bills.

The solution

What was built

The project built an open IoT operating system for buildings with two upgraded platforms (cloud.iO and Arrowhead), a common ontology for device interoperability, and smart control algorithms for heating optimization and demand-side management. These were validated across 5 demonstration sites covering electricity services (Sion, Paris) and district heating optimization (Aalborg, Neuchâtel, Skive).

Audience

Who needs this

Commercial property managers with large building portfolios seeking energy cost reductionDistrict heating utilities looking to optimize grid load and reduce CO2 emissionsBuilding automation integrators needing vendor-neutral IoT middlewareEnergy service companies (ESCOs) offering performance contracts for existing buildingsSmart city programs looking to scale building-level demand response

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Commercial Real Estate & Property Management

mid-size

Target: Property management firms or building owners managing large portfolios of older buildings

If you are a property manager dealing with high heating costs and poor visibility into energy consumption across your building portfolio — this project developed an open IoT platform with smart control algorithms that were tested across 5 demonstration sites. The system connects existing smart devices, meters, and heating appliances into one dashboard, giving you real-time building energy data and automated efficiency improvements without deep renovation.

District Heating Utilities

enterprise

Target: District heating operators looking to reduce system load and optimize grid balancing

If you are a district heating provider struggling with peak load management and CO2 reduction targets — domOS developed and piloted flex-offer extensions for demand-side management in Aalborg and Skive, Denmark. Their control techniques reduce consumption and lower system load by making connected buildings actively respond to grid signals, turning passive consumers into flexible grid assets.

Building Automation & IoT Solutions

SME

Target: IoT integrators and building automation companies seeking interoperable platforms

If you are a building automation company frustrated by vendor lock-in and incompatible device ecosystems — domOS created an open, multi-service IoT architecture with upgraded cloud.iO and Arrowhead platforms. These allow gateways to connect to any smart device or appliance type, tested with 11 consortium partners across 5 countries, giving you a vendor-neutral integration layer to build services on.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What would it cost to implement this in my building?

The project does not publish per-building deployment costs. The EUR 4,092,575 EU contribution funded development and testing across 5 demonstration sites with 11 partners. The approach is designed to work with existing smart devices and sensors, meaning it layers on top of current infrastructure rather than requiring full replacement — which suggests lower adoption costs compared to deep renovation.

Has this been tested at industrial scale or only in labs?

domOS was tested in 5 real-world demonstration sites across 3 countries: Sion and Neuchâtel in Switzerland, Paris in France, and Aalborg and Skive in Denmark. These pilots covered electricity-related smart services, district heating control, and closed-loop heating optimization in actual occupied buildings — not lab environments.

What about IP and licensing — can I use this technology?

The consortium produced 17 deliverables including upgraded open platforms (cloud.iO and Arrowhead) and a common ontology. As an Innovation Action with 73% industry participation and 5 SMEs, the IP is likely distributed among partners. You would need to contact consortium members directly to discuss licensing terms for specific components.

Does this comply with building energy regulations?

The project addresses EU energy efficiency directives by enabling smart monitoring and demand-side management in existing buildings. The open architecture includes built-in privacy controls — building owners can enforce rules on who accesses measurement and control data. Specific regulatory certifications are not detailed in available project data.

How long does deployment take?

Based on available project data, the project ran from September 2020 to February 2024, with pilots operational during that period. The system is designed to integrate with existing smart devices through gateways, which suggests faster deployment than full building retrofits, though exact installation timelines per building are not published.

Can this integrate with our existing building management system?

The core design principle of domOS is open interoperability. The upgraded cloud.iO and Arrowhead platforms act as middleware that connects to local smart devices and appliances of any type through in-building gateways. The domOS Common Ontology ensures different systems speak the same language, enabling integration with multiple IoT platforms operated by different parties.

Consortium

Who built it

The domOS consortium is strongly industry-oriented: 8 out of 11 partners come from industry (73%), with 5 being SMEs — a clear signal that commercialization was a priority, not just academic publishing. The coordinator is HAUTE ECOLE SPECIALISEE DE SUISSE OCCIDENTALE, a Swiss university of applied sciences, which bridges research and practical application. The 5-country spread (Switzerland, Czech Republic, Denmark, France, Slovenia) covers key European markets for smart buildings and district heating. With 2 universities and 1 research organization providing the scientific backbone, and 8 industry players driving implementation, this consortium was built to move technology from lab to market. The presence of upgraded, named platforms (cloud.iO and Arrowhead) suggests these industry partners brought existing products that were enhanced through the project.

HAUTE ECOLE SPECIALISEE DE SUISSE OCCIDENTALECoordinator · CH
CSEM CENTRE SUISSE D'ELECTRONIQUE ET DE MICROTECHNIQUE SA - RECHERCHE ET DEVELOPPEMENTparticipant · CH
ELECTRICITE DE FRANCEparticipant · FR
INEA INFORMATIZACIJA ENERGETIKA AVTOMATIZACIJA DOOparticipant · SI
NEOGRID TECHNOLOGIES APSparticipant · DK
OIKEN SAparticipant · CH
FENIX TNT SROparticipant · CZ
AALBORG UNIVERSITETparticipant · DK
SUNTHERM APSparticipant · DK

How to reach the team

The coordinator is HAUTE ECOLE SPECIALISEE DE SUISSE OCCIDENTALE in Switzerland. Contact through their website or the project page for partnership inquiries.

Order a report on this consortium See HAUTE ECOLE SPECIALISEE DE SUISSE OCCIDENTALE profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to connect with the domOS team for licensing, integration, or pilot collaboration? SciTransfer can arrange an introduction and help you evaluate whether this technology fits your building portfolio.

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