Eco-friendly living

Because of the cold climate and long distances between population centers, eco-friendly and energy-efficient living has always been a major consideration in Northern Finland. The City of Oulu’s Technical Department has long favored energy-efficient living and been involved in its further development. Several housing areas are currently being built in the region that use the latest technologies to achieve high energy efficiency. Some of these new communities will be self-sufficient in terms of energy.

In addition, the Oulu region has strong expertise in heat and power plants as well as energy measurement and control. Planora is the Finnish market leader in designing district heating networks and bioenergy heating plants. Ouman is the national market leader in heating regulators for homes and larger properties.

 Intelligent energy solutions

The Oulu region has long been known as a hub of expertise in high technology, especially in wireless data communications. The area is home to the research and development units of such major companies as Nokia and Nokia Siemens. The Oulu region also has a high number of software companies.

There are countless opportunities for applying ICT expertise in the renewable energy business. Examples include Ouman, which has applied ICT in its energy-efficient building systems, and Nokia Siemens and Sensinode, which have developed techologies for intelligent energy transfer.

The Oulu-based PrintoCent innovation center,  which specializes in printable electronics and optical measurements, offers unique business opportunities for many sectors. PrintoCent operates in collaboration with the VTT Technical Research Center of Finland, the University of Oulu, the Oulu University of Applied Sciences, and Oulu Innovation. Using highly cost-efficient roll-to-roll printing, the center develops commercial mass products and components based on printed intelligence, including flexible solar cells, sensors and paper-like displays. These applications can be used in paper and steel industry processes and in environmental measurements, to name but a few examples.

For companies, PrintoCent offers a production, research and development environment for creating new prototypes and technology solutions and for further improving existing products with printed intelligence.

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