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Mitsubishi Electric is challenging itself to achieve net zero energy consumption by fiscal 2031. It envisioned its SUSTIE building as a model but needed sophisticated technology to control and measure emissions for optimal energy use.

The company turned to Microsoft partner ICONICS to deploy Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability. It uses Azure IoT devices throughout SUSTIE to feed energy consumption data into the system and receives reporting from Microsoft Sustainability Manager.

Mitsubishi Electric’s SUSTIE team continually hones its understanding of energy use. As of late 2023, it had reduced energy consumption in SUSTIE by 115%. It’s sharing its growing sustainability knowledge throughout the company and with customers.

We believe our learnings, with the help of Microsoft Sustainability Manager and the Azure-based ICONICS solution, will create a more sustainable world for current and future generations.

Seiji Oguro, VP of Sustainability Innovation Group, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation

Forging a new sustainability paradigm

Mitsubishi Electric is channeling its concern for the future of the planet into action. The company’s first step is advancing sustainability, and it’s focusing on office buildings. The goal: creating a net zero energy building, or ZEB (a building that creates zero, or almost zero, net primary energy consumption annually through renewable energy sources and/or energy saving technologies).

Getting to net zero calls for a much more focused approach than turning heating and cooling systems down to save a small amount a month on energy costs. Amping up sustainability is all about comparing data streamed from myriad building systems with information about external conditions—weather, topography, and occupancy data. To demonstrate ZEB-related technologies, Mitsubishi researchers designed a model building which they call “SUSTIE,” the combination of “sustainability” and “energy.” The vision came together with IT systems from Microsoft partner and Mitsubishi Electric subsidiary ICONICS, a creator of IoT, cloud-based building management solutions.

The question of which solutions would support SUSTIE was an easy one for both companies, who have deep Microsoft expertise.

By modeling different energy scenarios with our AI simulation technology, we’ve reduced our energy use by 115%. We use our Azure-based ICONICS solution with Microsoft Sustainability Manager to better understand our energy use.

Jin Kawasaki, Ph.D., Head Researcher, Information Technology R&D Center, Mitsubishi Electric Corporation

Powering energy savings with data

Smart building expert ICONICS brought its real-time energy monitoring know-how to the project. Like its parent company Mitsubishi Electric, ICONICS has in-depth expertise in Microsoft Azure technologies and uses Azure IoT devices to control building systems. The plethora of technologies and data streams, needed to support smart buildings and optimize energy consumption, converge within Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability and require rapid visualization. “ICONICS invested early in Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability integration, understanding that customers need to track and report their environmental impact,” says Kyle Reissner, VP, Product Management at ICONICS. “Our Azure-based IoT solutions enable organizations to collect, visualize, and analyze data across building systems.”

ICONICS invested early in Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability integration, understanding that customers need to track and report their environmental impact.

Kyle Reissner, VP, Product Management, ICONICS

The SUSTIE team embraced Microsoft Sustainability Manager, a software as a service (SaaS) solution within Microsoft Cloud for Sustainability that forms the backbone of its sustainability management tool set. The SUSTIE team can view its emissions footprint and track sustainability goals with the solution. It uses the deep analysis capability in the tool to better understand data and improve techniques for increasing building sustainability. “SUSTIE details CO2 emissions using Microsoft Sustainability Manager reporting,” explains Jin Kawasaki, Ph.D., Head Researcher at the Information Technology R&D Center at Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. “This helps manage emissions throughout the building life cycle while providing consistent sustainability reporting.” Adds Yosuke Kaneko, Ph.D., General Manager of the Surveillance System Technology Department in the Information Technology R&D Center at Mitsubishi Electric Corporation, “SUSTIE showcases energy-saving technologies for buildings that we can show our customers. The progress we’ve achieved could only be possible with continuous visibility into sustainability data.”

Transforming buildings for the planet—and for people

A happy discovery was the increased human comfort that energy-saving buildings can deliver. “We use high-efficiency equipment that optimizes energy from sunlight and wind for SUSTIE, and we also monitor occupant health and comfort,” enthuses Kaneko. ”We’ve designed our buildings to provide a high level of comfort and energy efficiency, which is not an easy thing to do.”

The real winner is the planet. “By modeling different energy scenarios with our AI simulation technology,we’ve reduced ourenergy use by 115%,” reports Kawasaki. “We use our Azure-based ICONICS solution with Microsoft Sustainability Manager to better understand our energyuse. That extraenergy helps power five other buildingson our Mitsubishi Electric’s R&D campus.” It’s a strong step forward for Seiji Oguro, VP of the Sustainability Innovation Group at Mitsubishi Electric Corporation. “We are using what we’ve learned with SUSTIE to reach Mitsubishi Electric’s net zero sustainability goals and to share sustainability best practices with our customers,” he declares. “We believe our learnings, with the help of Microsoft Sustainability Manager and the Azure-based ICONICS solution, will createa more sustainable world for current andfuture generations.”

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