Conclusion The up-front payment is a parameter that affects both the con- nection rate and the economy of a DH project. It can strength- en DH development if used wisely, especially if supported by other efforts to increase the connection rate.
A guarantee that the DH company will fix your heating if your current system breaks down while you wait for DH to be installed. This prevents people from being forced to rein- vest in a new gas boiler or invest in another alternative, such as a small heat pump. This is a way to keep customers un- concerned and committed to DH while waiting to be con- nected. Once connected, people very rarely want to leave DH, but the waiting period is a risk to handle. Meet end-users where they are online with competent com- munication: Use Facebook (or other social media). As each project covers a small geographical area, it is not expensive to target exactly the potential customers in that area. With remarkable success, some DH companies have hired a com- pany with knowledge of DH and communication to handle their Facebook communication during the expansion peri- od. Local ambassadors can be excellent and trustworthy advo- cates for DH development. These can be locals with an in- terest in getting DH themselves. Find them and work with them! A political tool to ensure a high connection rate is to make it mandatory to connect to DH, but even so, these ideas could be used to increase customer satisfaction and move attention to the benefits of DH. Read more: This article is based on a report about up-front pay- ment connecting new customers to DH. It summaris- es experiences from Danish DH companies and other experts. It contains a set of detailed analyses that also investigate aspects of financing, depreciation periods, and the effects of higher connection rates. This work has been supported by The Danish District Heating Association’s research and development funds and by the H2020-funded EMB3Rs project (emb3rs.eu). Link to report on DBDH homepage
The benefits of service agreements on units With a service agreement, the DH company owns the DH unit in the building. It handles servicing, repairing, and replacing it when needed. The Danish DH compa- nies design the service agreements to cover the costs. The agreements give customers value and enable opti- mized operation of the DH system. Benefits for the customer • No unforeseen expenses • Approximately the same price but higher value compared to owning the unit • Better and easier service and maintenance • Improved system efficiency and immediate de- tection and correction of errors or suboptimal op- eration. In some cases, the households even profit when the improved operation of the unit more than covers the costs of the service agreement. Benefits for the DH company • Better service for the customers at no added cost • Access to data and the ability to remotely optimize unit operation bring new options: Immediate error detection, adjusting settings to improve overall en- ergy efficiency, locating the installations that pre- vent the entire system from running as optimally as possible, and new services to increase comfort. • Having only a few types of units makes servicing and IT integration easier.
For further information please contact: Hanne Kortegaard Støchkel, hks@dbdh.dk or Daniel Møller Sneum, dasn@dtu.dk
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