Giessener Land on the way to becoming a smart region

Digitalisation, sustainable district development and climate protection - this is the triad with which the smart Giessen region is approaching the future. The coronavirus pandemic has shown how important digitalisation is in all areas of life. At the same time, it has also highlighted the challenges, particularly with regard to citizens' digital skills and technical equipment. The district of Giessen is therefore taking a holistic approach to digitalisation and closely involving the people in the region in the project process. ‘The aim is to put digitalisation at the service of the people and improve the quality of life in the district. With the ‘Smart Giessener Land’ model project, the district of Giessen wants to develop sustainable solutions for regional challenges and make the most of the opportunities offered by digitalisation,’ says Anita Schneider, District Administrator of the district of Giessen.

From digital education to a dynamic heat register

Specific projects are being implemented in the following areas:

Digital education and skills development:
• The ‘Smart Gebildet’ project is setting up social hubs as central points of contact for digital topics. Here, people from the Giessen region can familiarise themselves with digital technologies and devices without pressure and with guidance. The ‘Digital.Mobil’ is a special service - a bus that brings educational programmes to people in the various locations in the region.

Data utilisation and infrastructure:
• With the ‘Open Data Hub’, we are creating a data platform that will initially focus on the areas of mobility and climate protection. With the help of LoRaWAN, sensors and devices will be networked, a smart property management system will be introduced and a sustainability dashboard will be developed that clearly presents the most important information for citizens in the district.

Health and well-being:

• ‘Smart Umsorgt’ is implementing various initiatives. Environmental sensors are used to prevent heat in order to protect vulnerable population groups. A ‘ReAAL lab’ demonstrates ambient assisted living technologies* to familiarise older people in particular with these possibilities. In addition, communication in control centres is optimised using speech-to-text technology, which makes emergency care more efficient and greatly reduces the amount of documentation required.

* Ambient Assisted Living (AAL) refers to technical assistance systems that link the environment with new technologies to enable people with support needs to be more independent. For example, networked systems issue an alarm when leaving the home if the cooker or coffee machine are not switched off, windows are unlocked or the light is still on.

‘Starke Heimat Hessen’ is also supporting the following two projects with funding:

• Energy management through smart metering systems:
The district of Giessen is planning to install intelligent metering systems (iMSys) in municipal properties in the district in order to increase the energy efficiency of the buildings. Intelligent measuring systems (iMSys), also known as ‘smart meters’, can record and provide a building's energy consumption data (electricity, heat) in real time. The energy consumption data is linked to the district of Giessen's Open Data Hub, where it can be compared and optimised in real time.

• Creating the data basis for a dynamic heat register:
In the ‘DynamiKol’ project, a software solution for independently recording the energy requirements of private households and neighbourhoods was developed together with the district of Giessen. This software solution provides homeowners with a tool for simulating refurbishment measures and documenting savings effects. In a first step, the software is being tested in six neighbourhoods. During this test phase, the experiences of the individual user groups will be collected and the software optimised, for example with regard to data linking. The prerequisite for a district-wide roll-out of the application is the digitalisation of relevant building files throughout the district.

‘There is certainly still some educational work to be done here’

The projects from the Giessen region clearly show how digitalisation can improve the lives of people in the region. ‘Nevertheless, people's reactions to the Smart Region project are very different,’ says Felix Reinhardt, Project Manager Smart Giessen Region. ‘There is a group of people who are rather critical of the term ‘digitalisation’ and the associated Smart Region project, if not downright dismissive. The other group, which is certainly larger, shows great interest in this idea and is even prepared to provide support in some areas of planning and implementation. However, it should not be forgotten that many people are not familiar with the term ‘Smart City’ or, in our case, ‘Smart Giessener Land’. As is certainly the case in most regions, there is still a lot of educational work to be done here.’

The district is working closely with the district adult education centre to ensure that older people in Giessener Land are not left behind digitally. Supported by project funding, the Giessen district adult education centre offers special courses for senior citizens, where they can try out digital devices under supervision, for example. The Future Bus mentioned above also brings these technologies directly to people. And the Ambient Assisted Living systems in particular are designed to support older people in their everyday lives so that they can live independently and autonomously for as long as possible.

Tips from the smart Giessen region

When cities and regions start talking about digitalisation, it may seem like an impossible task at first. That's why Felix Reinhardt advises:

• Start small and develop scalable solutions: Start with pilot projects that are easily scalable in order to achieve initial success and gain experience.

• Ensure citizen participation: Integrate citizens into the process at an early stage to gain acceptance and support for the projects.

• Focus on sustainability: Ensure that your smart city initiatives are focussed on sustainability and resource efficiency to secure long-term benefits

(No) end in sight

With the funding programmes ‘Model Projects Smart Cities’ and ‘Strong Homeland Hesse’, we are supported by two funding programmes. The plan is to implement the individual projects by the end of 2027, but with the aim of continuing the individual measures that have proved successful during the project phase after the funding period has ended. Even if all projects are implemented by mid-2027, it remains a long-term task to realise the goals for a Smart Giessen region.