The energy transition affects virtually all areas of life and also becoming increasingly relevant for smaller communities. Instead of relying on individual measures, climate protection measures are needed that encompass multiple locations and numerous sectors. However, particularly small towns and villages often lack the necessary know-how as well as the personnel and financial resources to be able to adequately address the climatic, environmental and energetic challenges. This is where the »Trail²« collaborative project comes in: the online TRAIL tool offers municipalities an uncomplicated tool to facilitate the introduction to the energy transition for decision-makers. The tool uses freely available geodata and statistical data along with information on funding programmes, contact persons and basic technical data on the network structures to map communities’ electricity and heat requirements. The energy savings potential is indicated on a map and concrete recommendations for action are proposed. To keep obstacles to a minimum, TRAIL is programmed so that stakeholders in rural communities only require an up-to-date browser and internet connection to use it. No special software is needed. 

Overarching energy concept

The tool was successfully tested in four model regions in Thuringia during the initial project phase. Two additional municipalities – in Hesse and Bavaria – will join the municipalities of Großobringen, Neumark, Werther, and Kahla in the second project phase. The quality and range of data will moreover be enhanced (taking data protection considerations into account), and energy and environmental strategies for the fields of energy, water, and waste linked across sectors. Project manager Uwe Cämmerer-Seibel from the Professorship for Building Physics is convinced: »Coordinated activities on the municipal and regional levels based on reliable data and overarching objectives are required for the energy transition to succeed.« 

A new approach is above all necessary in the fields of energetic retrofitting, heat supply and the integration of renewable energies. To date, responsibility for these aspects has largely been left to individual parties. In many cases, communal energy supply concepts and cross-municipality commercial developments have proven more effective than the many individual investments made within a municipality. 

About the collaborative project

A total of seven partners are involved in the interdisciplinary »Trail²« research project. The Professorship for Building Physics at the Bauhaus-Universität in Weimar is the project lead. Beside the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar, the Fraunhofer Institute for Applied Systems Technology in Ilmenau and the Institute for Energy Industry Law at the FSU in Jena are also providing scientific support. JENA-GEOS®-Ingenieurbüro GmbH and ThINK – Thüringer Institut für Nachhaltigkeit und Klimaschutz GmbH in Jena are mainly responsible for processing the GIS data and calculating the potential of renewable energies. Batix Software GmbH based in Saalfeld programmes the software. And finally, quaas-stadtplaner from Weimar is tasked with elaborating the measures and maintaining close contact with the model municipalities.

TRAIL2 – Transformation in rural areas 2
Sub-project: dataTRAIL. For the systematic and efficient collection of data and processing of building energy quality standards
Project lead at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar: Uwe Cämmerer-Seibel (Dipl.-Ing.), Faculty of Civil Engineering, Professorship for Building Physics
Project duration: 1 November 2019 to 31 October 2022
Third-party funder: Federal Ministry of Economics and Technology (BMWi)
Total funding: €776,638

More information: www.trail-energie.de

In case of questions, please contact Uwe Cämmerer-Seibel at the Bauhaus-Universität Weimar by telephone (+49 (0)36 43/58 45 99) or email (uwe.caemmerer-seibel@uni-weimar.de).