GreenPlay · Project

Game-Based Energy Monitoring Platform That Cuts Household Electricity Use by 30%

energyPilotedTRL 7

Imagine a Fitbit for your home's electricity — it watches your energy use in real time and turns saving power into a game. Residents in public housing got a web dashboard showing their consumption, plus challenges and tips to use less. The trick is that when saving energy feels like a competition instead of a chore, people actually change their habits. Tested in 200 homes across 3 European cities, the approach cut energy bills by up to 30%.

By the numbers

30%

Target energy consumption reduction in testing homes

200

Homes targeted for demonstration

European cities used for demonstration

EUR 1,705,500

EU funding contribution

Consortium partners across 3 countries

Iterative solution versions tested with users (V1, V2, V3)

The business problem

What needed solving

Public housing managers and energy utilities struggle to get residents to reduce electricity consumption. Telling people to "use less energy" rarely works — awareness campaigns have poor engagement and no feedback loop. Without real-time visibility and motivation, tenants have no reason to change daily habits, and building owners keep paying inflated energy bills.

The solution

What was built

A full energy monitoring and gamification platform, iterated through three tested versions (V1, V2, V3) with real user feedback at each stage. The system includes real-time energy sensors, a web-based consumption dashboard, personalized advice and challenges, and a serious game designed to make energy saving engaging. Across 12 deliverables, the team built and validated the complete solution in operational settings.

Audience

Who needs this

Social housing operators managing electrically heated buildingsEnergy utilities seeking customer engagement and demand reduction toolsSmart building technology providers adding tenant-facing featuresMunicipal governments running energy efficiency programsProperty management companies trying to cut operating costs

Business applications

Who can put this to work

Social Housing & Property Management

any

Target: Public housing operators or property managers overseeing electrically heated residential buildings

If you are a social housing operator dealing with high electricity bills across your building portfolio — this project developed a real-time monitoring platform with a gamified interface, tested in 200 homes across 3 European cities, that achieved up to 30% energy consumption reduction. The system was iterated through 3 versions with real tenant feedback, meaning it is designed around actual user behavior, not theory.

Energy Utilities

enterprise

Target: Electricity providers looking for demand-side management and customer engagement tools

If you are an energy utility struggling with customer engagement around energy efficiency — this project built a web-based platform combining real-time consumption monitoring with a serious game that keeps residents actively involved. Demonstrated with 200 households, the gamification approach drove measurable behavior change where traditional awareness campaigns fail. The platform could be white-labeled as a customer retention and demand reduction tool.

Smart Building Technology

SME

Target: Building automation or smart home companies seeking tenant engagement modules

If you are a smart building technology company that has sensors and dashboards but low tenant engagement — this project developed a gamification layer on top of real-time energy monitoring that was tested and refined through 3 iterative versions with real users. The serious game component addresses the gap between data availability and actual behavior change, proven across 3 cities and 200 homes.

Frequently asked

Quick answers

What did this project cost and what would deployment cost us?

The EU contributed EUR 1,705,500 to develop and pilot the full platform with an 8-partner consortium. Deployment costs for a new operator would depend on scale, but the core technology — sensors, web platform, and game — was built and tested. Based on available project data, specific per-unit licensing costs are not published.

Can this scale beyond 200 homes to thousands of units?

The pilot demonstrated the solution in 200 homes across 3 European cities. The architecture uses web-based monitoring and internet-connected sensors, which are inherently scalable. However, the project data does not include stress tests at larger scale, so additional validation would be needed for mass deployment.

Who owns the IP and can we license this technology?

The project was coordinated by ESTIA (Ecole Superieure des Technologies Industrielles Avancees) in France, with 5 SMEs among the 8 partners. IP ownership typically follows H2020 rules where each partner owns what they created. Licensing would need to be negotiated directly with the consortium members.

Does this only work for electrically heated buildings?

The pilot specifically targeted homes heated with electricity and required internet access — those were the two conditions for the demonstration. The monitoring platform could potentially be adapted for other energy sources, but the tested and validated setup was electric heating only.

Is the project still active and is the technology maintained?

GreenPlay ran from March 2015 to August 2018 and is now closed. The project website was at greenplay-project.eu. Whether the technology is still maintained or available for licensing would need to be confirmed with the consortium partners directly.

What evidence is there that the game actually changes behavior?

The team built 3 successive versions (V1, V2, V3) of the solution, each tested with real users and corrected based on feedback. The objective targeted a 30% decrease in energy consumption across 200 testing homes. The iterative user-testing approach across 3 versions suggests the team actively refined the behavioral engagement mechanics.

Are there regulatory requirements this helps address?

The EU Energy Efficiency Directive pushes member states to reduce energy consumption in public buildings. A tool that demonstrably cuts residential electricity use by up to 30% could help housing authorities meet national energy efficiency targets. Based on available project data, no specific certifications or regulatory approvals are mentioned.

Consortium

Who built it

The GreenPlay consortium brings together 8 partners from 3 countries (Spain, France, Hungary), with a strong SME presence — 5 of the 8 partners are small or medium enterprises. The 38% industry ratio (3 industry partners) combined with 2 universities and 1 research organization shows a balance between commercial drive and technical depth. The coordinator, ESTIA in France, is itself classified as an SME higher education institution, which suggests a practical, application-oriented leadership style rather than pure academia. For a business looking to adopt or license this technology, the high SME count means multiple potential commercial partners who understand market realities.

ECOLE SUPERIEURE DES TECHNOLOGIES INDUSTRIELLES AVANCEESCoordinator · FR
BUDAPESTI MUSZAKI ES GAZDASAGTUDOMANYI EGYETEMparticipant · HU
FUNDACION CENTRO TECNOLOXICO DE EFICIENCIA E SOSTENIBILIDADE ENERXETICAparticipant · ES
CHAMBRE DE COMMERCE ET D'INDUSTRIE DE BAYONNE PAYS BASQUEparticipant · FR
EUROQUALITY SASparticipant · FR

How to reach the team

ESTIA (Ecole Superieure des Technologies Industrielles Avancees), France — contact via CORDIS project page or institution website

Order a report on this consortium See ECOLE SUPERIEURE DES TECHNOLOGIES INDUSTRIELLES AVANCEES profile →

Next steps

Talk to the team behind this work.

Want to explore licensing this gamified energy platform or connecting with the GreenPlay consortium? SciTransfer can arrange an introduction and help assess fit for your portfolio.

Order a report on this topic More in Energy & Climate