PowerDIS, is it the future of energy modeling?

 Understanding the energy needs of a building, a neighborhood, a city, this would really allow the city to become intelligent, overcoming some of its energy waste problems. Consuming less, consuming better, is a matter of individual awareness in the service of the collective, but it is also the objective set by brand new intelligent modeling tools. In France, PowerDIS is one of the assets of communities in defining their territorial energy strategy. Let’s understand what it’s all about!

What is PowerDIS?

Positioning itself as a reference software in urban energy simulation, PowerDIS was launched in early 2022 by its creators, Efficacity and the CSTB.

This tool undoubtedly drives a completely new approach to energy optimization, since it makes it possible to identify precise scenarios for the energy efficiency of buildings based on key information collected during the pre-project phase. More concretely, the software couples the simulations of energy needs with the actual consumption recorded in the buildings concerned (several tens to hundreds of urban units).

Visualizing the real impact of an urban development project, communities and, more generally, decision-makers, are better able to effectively manage their energy strategy.

How does this energy modeling tool work?

Above all, the software relies on the INSEE and IGN databases to establish the neighborhood layout, but also on the Efficacity databases and on user data, reported to the energy networks and to the building envelope. Here are the steps for how the modeling tool works.

Creation of the neighborhood layout (by importing building layers or drawings).

Addition of information on the nature of the building, year of construction, or even current performance levels of the unit.

Calculation of the annual energy needs of buildings, in just a few minutes (no hourly or intra-hourly time up to 10 minutes). This calculation is based on the parameters linked to the insulation of the envelope, its waterproofing, its internal contributions as well as its heating, domestic hot water, and ventilation systems. All energy vectors are taken into account here.

Calculation of consumption of energy production and distribution systems. PowerDIS compares the different layout possibilities based on the consumption of energy vectors and the time behavior of the systems.

Summary of all the results. The user obtains the cartographic representation of the buildings, their energy needs, and their power. It is able to access the temporal representation of the energy needs of each building by use and export its summaries.

Can be used for a renewable energy supply study, a heat network master plan or for a more global development project, the PowerDIS software displays real added value in the quality and veracity of the information. provided, as in the fluidity of its interface, accessible to all audiences.