Interview with Mag. Helmut Bruckner – Project Manager Sonnenplatz Großschönau GmbH
Helmut Bruckner
How did you come to know about the opportunity to join InBetween Project’s Consortium?
We have been working together with the Austrian Institute of Technology (AIT) in several projects over the recent years. They know about our capabilities as Demonstration Partner of various energy efficiency measures, and where asking whether we are interested in joining InBetween. As this is a great project aiming at energy efficient lifestyles, we were happy to join.
Why did you decide to join InBetween project’s consortium?
As a team we are glad to be part of a new international project with partners from all parts of Europe. The project fits very will into the long-time strategy of the municipality Großschönau as well as Sonnenpatz Großschönau. We want to show potentials to save energy, raise awareness and motivate to use available technology and possibilities.
Is it the first time that you are working for a H2020 research project? If no, was your previous experience useful for the development of InBetween? How?
Yes, InBetween is our first H2020 research project. In the past we took part in two successful international “Intelligent Metering” research projects. Our experiences in measuring data, installing sensors and international project management will be very helpful for InBetween. Two main competences of our research in cooperation with universities are firstly energy efficiency and secondly motivation and raising awareness. We took part in many projects in these fields, locally, regionally, nationally as well as on international level.
What do you like the most about the fact of being part of an international partnership?
International partnerships are always great in developing and improving your knowledge about available system, technologies and processes as you meet professionals from different places and different cultures, working in the same field and on the same goals. It is a very positive work when you try to understand and learn about other countries challenges, try to use the knowledge of all partners, combine it in a new and innovative way, and aim to solve problems for the greater good. This is improving personal competences as well as the competences of the whole participating partners.
Concerning InBetween, what’s your main role in the project?
In InBetween I coordinate the activities of Sonnenplatz Großschönau, which is implementing InBetween platform physically at the demo-buildings, coordinating the activities together with the users of the demo-buildings, and finally measuring and assessing the results of InBetween.
Concerning the project’s impacts, what’s your main role? What are you doing to assure energy savings/ what are you doing to assure energy behavioral change?
As we are directly in communication and interaction with the demo-building users, we see our main role in keeping them active, informed and motivated, in order to enable a smooth implementation and execution of InBetween. After seeing and assessing the results, we will use our network of partners and players in the wider field of energy efficient living to multiply the results and show the available technology and its usefulness.
