Care building · Cooling
Cooling in care building: what the SRI measures
Cooling mirrors heating: control per room, prevent heating and cooling from fighting each other, store cold when electricity is cheap, and let the chiller follow actual demand.
In short
- 1This page shows how smart cooling systems in care buildings are assessed using the Smart Readiness Indicator.
- 2Care buildings operate 24 hours a day and require adjustable comfort per room, so cooling carries significant weight in the score.
- 3The Cooling domain receives a weighting of 2 out of 3 here, with ten services that together determine how high the building scores.
Weight of this domain for this building type
Which services count
| Service | Lowest level | Highest level | Advice |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cooling emission control C-1a · A · 5 levels | No automatic control | Individual room control with communication and occupancy detection | level 2 or higher |
| Emission control for TABS (cooling mode) C-1b · 4 levels | No automatic control | Advanced central automatic control with intermittent operation and/or room temperature feedback control | – |
| Control of distribution network chilled water temperature (supply or return) C-1c · 3 levels | Constant temperature control | Demand based control | – |
| Control of distribution pumps in networks C-1d · 5 levels | No automatic control | Variable speed pump control (external demand signal) | – |
| Interlock: avoiding simultaneous heating and cooling in the same room C-1f · 3 levels | No interlock | Total interlock (control system ensures no simultaneous heating and cooling can take place) | – |
| Control of Thermal Energy Storage (TES) operation C-1g · 4 levels | Continuous storage operation | Cold storage capable of flexible control through grid signals (e.g. DSM) | – |
| Generator control for cooling C-2a · A · 4 levels | On/Off-control of cooling production | Variable control of cooling production capacity depending on the load AND external signals from grid | level 2 or higher |
| Sequencing of different cooling generators C-2b · 5 levels | Priorities only based on running times | Sequencing based on dynamic priority list, including external signals from grid | – |
| Report information regarding cooling system performance C-3 · A · 5 levels | None | Central or remote reporting of performance evaluation including forecasting and/or benchmarking; also including predictive management and fault detection | level 2 or higher |
| Flexibility and grid interaction C-4 · A · 5 levels | No automatic control | Optimized control of cooling system based on local predictions and grid signals (e.g. through model predictive control) | level 2 or higher |
Worked example
If everything in this domain is at level 0, the domain contributes nothing. At the highest level for all services, the indicative total score for this building type rises by about 16 percentage points (from 30 to 46 percent, with all other domains at level 1).
Why does cooling count so heavily in a care building?
A nursing home or care facility is never empty. Residents stay there day and night, and a night setback like in an office is not possible. The cooling system must therefore continuously perform at a stable comfort level, adjustable per room, without interruptions.
Within the Smart Readiness Indicator (SRI), a European methodology that measures the digital intelligence of a building, the Cooling domain for this building type receives a weighting of 2 out of 3 possible points. This is high compared with other domains and shows how important well-controlled cooling is for vulnerable residents.
What smart-ready services fall under this domain?
The Cooling domain consists of ten smart-ready services, functions that the SRI methodology uses to assess automation. Each service has functionality levels from 0 (no automatic control) to 4 (fully automated and grid-aware).
- C-1a controls cooling delivery per room, essential for comfort per room in a care environment.
- C-1f prevents heating and cooling in the same room from working against each other, a common energy leak.
- C-1g controls cold storage, so a building can benefit from low-cost electricity periods.
- C-2a and C-2b regulate how the chiller and multiple generators perform together.
- C-3 provides performance reporting, including fault detection, crucial when systems fail with vulnerable residents.
- C-4 makes the system suitable for flexible control via grid signals, also called demand response.
What does this mean for the building's score?
Each service is assessed according to three key functionalities, weighted equally: energy efficiency, response to user needs, and flexibility towards the electricity grid. Together these determine the score in one of seven classes, from below 20 percent to 90 to 100 percent.
For a care building, emphasis often lies on fault notification and individual room control, because these directly affect resident health and comfort. A low score on these services indicates risks that go beyond energy consumption alone.
What this means for you
- Owner
- As owner of a care building it is worthwhile to check whether cooling delivery per room is adjustable and whether faults are reported automatically, because downtime directly affects vulnerable residents. Investing in individual room control and performance reporting reduces risks and can significantly raise the SRI score.
- Tenant
- Residents and care staff notice a well-controlled cooling system mainly through stable temperature per room, even during warm periods, without heating and cooling working against each other. When faults occur, automatic notification ensures problems are resolved faster, benefiting comfort and safety.
- Advisor
- When assessing, pay attention to the presence of individual room control (C-1a) and interlock between heating and cooling (C-1f), because these carry more weight in care buildings than in other sectors. Also check whether performance reporting (C-3) includes fault detection, given the 24-hour occupancy and limited tolerance for downtime.
Next step
Want to know where your building stands?