The SUSTAIN project delivers an integrated digital framework for urban energy management, combining data acquisition, system modelling, and decision support for city districts. By digitising building and energy flows, the platform enhances transparency and enables coordinated optimisation of renewable and decentralized solutions.

Technical Results
Phase 1 of SUSTAIN produced a cloud‑based demonstrator that ingests heterogeneous data from CityGML, OpenStreetMap, and ICRis. The system automatically generates building energy demand profiles, including hourly, monthly, and annual levels, and links them to district‑level supply options such as combined heat and power (CHP), electric heating, thermal storage, and photovoltaic arrays. A robust optimisation module, based on genetic algorithms and convex programming, evaluates thousands of configuration scenarios under uncertainty. For the reference district of Sydowstraße, the tool identified optimal mixes of CHP, electric heaters, and thermal storage that reduce peak demand by up to 15 % while keeping annual costs within 5 % of the baseline. In the Innenstadt and Rheinbaben districts, the same methodology produced cost‑efficient solutions that cut projected emissions by 12 % compared with conventional supply plans.
The platform’s BEMS communication layer implements the MIRABEL standard, enabling real‑time monitoring and control of building‑level energy devices. A vDistrict web interface visualises demand, supply, and flexibility options across three aggregation levels (building, district, city). Using TensorBoard and Spagobi dashboards, stakeholders can compare key performance indicators such as energy intensity, CO₂ emissions, and cost distributions. The optimisation under uncertainty module generates histograms of annual costs and emissions for each configuration, allowing decision makers to assess risk profiles and select robust solutions.

Collaboration and Impact
SUSTAIN brings together the City of Bottrop, RWTH Aachen University, and a consortium of industry partners, including energy utilities and software vendors. The project aligns with the International Energy Agency’s Annex 63, contributing data and methodology to the global community of energy‑efficient communities. By integrating local knowledge into the optimisation process, the platform increases stakeholder acceptance and supports policy development for sustainable urban energy systems. The demonstrator has been deployed in three reference districts—Sydowstraße, Innenstadt, and Rheinbaben—providing a scalable blueprint for other cities to replicate the integrated, data‑driven approach.