SOPHIE - the smart shower
Project manager: Pavel Sevela / Fellow (UIBK Energy Efficient Building)
Project deputy: Rainer Pfluger / Host (UIBK Energy Efficient Building)
- Johannes Frenger (UIBK Energy Efficient Building)
- Martin Kirchmair (UIBK Department of Microbiology)
- Christoph Drexel / external expertise (Drexel reduziert GmbH)
- Stephan Breier / external expertise (Element Design)
Funding organisation: Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG)
Funding programme: Spin-off Fellowship
Funding amount: 279,027.00 euros
Duration: 01.12.2019 until 31.05.2021
Project website: Sophie - the smart shower website
What is SOPHIE?
SOPHIE is the complete shower solution that combines comfort and energy efficiency. SOPHIE guarantees lower costs for hot water energy consumption and is climate-friendly thanks to heat recovery.
Why SOPHIE?
In recent decades, targeted research has made it possible to significantly reduce heating requirements when constructing or renovating buildings. This represents an important step in reducing energy consumption and emissions in the housing sector, particularly with regard to the climate targets of Agenda 2030 and environmental protection as a whole.
The problem - although the heating demand of buildings has decreased significantly, the amount of energy needed to provide hot water has remained almost unchanged. In short, the energy requirement for hot water in highly insulated buildings is usually higher than the heating requirement.
This massive savings potential in the area of shower water has not yet been fully utilised by any technology. That's why SOPHIE!
"Energy efficiency is one of the keys to the energy revolution. In our search for potential savings, we discovered an aspect that had previously received little attention - the energy consumption of showers.
SOPHIE aims to set new standards in terms of sustainability and save up to 80% of the energy required to heat shower water."
Pavel Sevela, civil engineer, scientist & developer of SOPHIE
Press & Publications
Showering with Sophie - press article in the top.tirol magazine (supplement to the Tiroler Tageszeitung) "Innovation in Tirol" from December 2019:
