Left to right: Sumit Bose (Energy Live News), Casey Cole and Gareth Jones (Guru Systems), Lord Risby (ADE President), and Tim Rotheray (ADE Director)

London-based Guru Systems was presented with an Innovation Award by the Association of Decentralised Energy (ADE) at its annual awards ceremony.

The company, which manufactures smart payment and monitoring systems for district heat networks, was praised for its work to improve the energy efficiency of heat networks.

This latest award win came on the same day as the government announced £300m in funding to support 200 heat networks across the country as part of its Autumn Statement.

Guru Systems’ technology allows operators to monitor onsite energy schemes in real time, ensuring they are aware of any hidden inefficiencies, enabling them to bill residents accurately for the energy they use and allowing users to see their up-to-the-minute consumption.

By giving greater control to residents, the company calculated that its technology achieved an average of 15% reduction in energy use across three of its schemes, equating to about £30 per home per year savings.

It has also been working with the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) to develop web-based technology that analyses performance data and applies powerful machine learning algorithms to identify the root causes of inefficiency and propose costed measures to improve heat networks.

By using the technology and implementing cost-effective improvement measures, the four networks involved in the pilot project could reduce input fuel use by between 33 and 51 percent. This equates to an average saving of £179 per home per year.

Judges commented:

This was an entry that really stood out as being truly innovative. By providing data to operators and residents, the Guru Systems gives better control of heat networks – increasing efficiency and enabling accurate energy billing. Consumers will feel a real benefit from Guru Systems’ work. This should be the new norm for district heating schemes.

The company has estimated that the software developed as part of the government scheme could save UK heat networks £400m in reduced energy costs over the next 10 years.

Casey Cole, CEO of Guru Systems, said:

This award is testament to the hard work put in by our teams every day.

We are delighted to have been recognised for our technology and the work we are doing as part of our DECC project.

We hope we can continue to innovate, raising the bar for efficiency on heat networks and help to deliver lean heat to the thousands of people living on district heat networks.

Guru Systems’ existing technology has been installed in more than 4,000 homes on more than 75 district heat networks nationwide.