European cities use PPI to increase energy efficiency in municipal buildings
Barcelona (Spain), Birmingham (UK) and Eindhoven (the Netherlands) aim to improve energy efficiency in municipal buildings through the procurement of brand new, innovative products. Each city is engaging in public procurement of innovation (PPI) activities as part of the Smart Procurement European Alliance (SPEA) project, which aims to spur demand for innovation in public authorities.
Other goals of the EU-funded project include enhancing the capacity of contracting authorities, as well as SMEs, to procure innovation, building cooperation with other stakeholders at a local and European level, and to influence public institutions to engage in PPI through improving knowledge.
The three cities will identify relevant buyers groups, build the PPI capacity of both procurers and companies, and deploy a procurement process to facilitate innovative solutions, including developing a small pilot project prior to large scale procurement to reduce risk. It is envisaged that the project will take four years to reach its objectives.
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