In this Research Note, we examine MeteoViva GmbH, the German provider of a predictive building control system and Sustainable Buildings-as-a-Service offering. This analysis covers the firm’s development, funding, recent as-a-Service deployment and strategic partnerships.

The private company has undisclosed external investors, one of whom has backed the firm since the launch of its first product. MeteoViva announced a capital increase in the seven-digit range in January 2022 which provides the company with new financial resources to expand its partner business.

MeteoViva GmbH is has its headquarters in Jülich, Germany and subsidiaries in Switzerland, Netherlands and the USA. The company reports 32 employees in its 2020 company accounts filed at the German Company Register dated 23rd September 2021. It also noted in the filing that the ongoing corona pandemic did not have any significant effects on the net assets, financial position and results of operations in the 2020 financial year. Memoori estimates revenue in the range of $5 to $10 million.

Founded in 2001 by Markus Werner and Dr Stefan Hardt, Meteoviva launched its first product in 2009. As one of the first companies to emerge with a model-based building control system, they were met with a lot of scepticism about their data-driven approach. Their main offering, MeteoViva Climate, delivers a smart data solution for better energy and climate management. The algorithm works predictively, is self-learning, reduces operating and energy expenditures significantly as well as CO2 emissions. Their technology incorporates building physics and all the factors influencing indoor climate. This includes energy prices, occupancy and the weather. From that information, MeteoViva Climate determines the control data to deliver the optimum amount of heating or cooling energy and airflow required to maintain the desired climate in each of the building zones. The solution can interface with any existing building automation system, is readily suited to existing and new buildings and is also independent of the HVAC used behind the building automation system.

Their recently launched Sustainable Buildings as a Service has attracted its first customer. The commercial property at Ganghoferstrasse 27-29 in Munich is the first building in Wealthcap's portfolio to use MeteoViva’s predictive building control system. The smart data technology enables the German real asset and investment manager in the reduction of energy use and CO2 emissions for the benefit of its investors and tenants. Instead of purchasing software and systems to run MeteoViva Climate, Wealthcap receives the full functionality of the technology in exchange for paying a monthly operating fee. In addition, MeteoViva provides a fixed savings guarantee. As a result, the savings exceed the monthly fees.

Two strategic partnerships with building automation vendors were announced in 2021. Memoori considers that these alliances can be attributed to the appointment of Uwe Großmann, now responsible for strategic partnerships who had been supporting MeteoViva as a company advisory board member since October 2020. As the former Head of Sales and Operations Region Germany of Siemens Smart Infrastructure, he led the portfolio management for the Solution & Service business of Siemens Building Technologies for many years. In June 2021, a collaboration with Siemens Smart Infrastructure in Germany enabled MeteovViva to provide an interface to the Siemens Observer and Navigator platform. 

This was described by Dr Stefan Hardt as “a real paradigm shift. For the first time, our product is integrated as a digital service into the ecosystem of a major platform provider. With this collaboration, we are creating a synchronized approach and a standard interface with one of the largest building technology providers in the world”. 

In November 2021, a strategic partnership between MeteoViva and the Freiburg-based building automation manufacturer, Sauter-Cumulus was announced. The company aims to integrate the control data provided by MeteoViva Climate directly through the web-based Sauter Vision Center. This will provide customers with an integrated user interface to operate, analyze and optimize the system operation of their buildings. In combination with MeteoViva Climate, buildings equipped with Sauter Vision Center control and monitor themselves.

MeteoViva has also established a partnership with Locatee, a Zurich based startup offering workplace analytics software.  The two technology companies have successfully implemented their collaboration at the Zofingen data centre of the Swiss PostFinance AG. MeteoViva can integrate the occupancy data from Locatee in its real-time indoor climate optimisation simulation, thus providing even more precise control of the building.

MeteoViva already has more than 5 million operating hours of experience in over 150 buildings worldwide. Clients include Generali, Allianz and Deka Immobilien which established a framework agreement with MeteoViva in 2019. In 2022, MeteoViva Climate is expected to be functional in 120 Deka properties worldwide.

Memoori Take:  MeteoViva has been delivering sustainable solutions in the German market for many years, as a cost-effective option for real estate funds and large operators of commercial real estate. The market is now picking up considerable momentum in the wake of the discussion on ESG and decarbonization and MeteoViva is well-placed to accelerate market penetration. In collaboration with leading building automation manufacturers, they have begun to integrate their building control data as a digital service into the platforms of established vendors.

This article was written by Daphne Tomlinson, Senior Research Associate at Memoori.