The SATO project has wrapped up activities
Author: Valia Iliopoulou
14th May 2025
The SATO project, aimed at reducing energy waste and improving comfort in buildings in 5 different locations in Europe (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Denmark, Austria) concluded this year, after 4 years of successful activity in the building energy management sector.
The project feeds into CORE Group’s wider work within the energy efficiency sector, allowing our team to apply our AI expertise to the development of Energy Management Systems, enabling individuals and organisations alike to reduce their energy costs, improve sustainability and enhance the operational efficiency of their buildings.
Project Overview
The SATO project, comprising a consortium of 16 partners across 7 countries, developed a cloud-based, AI-driven platform that integrates IoT sensors, machine learning, and Building Information Modeling (BIM). The project created interactive tools that enable buildings to self-assess their energy performance, detect inefficiencies, and come up with actionable optimisation scenarios to improve their energy performance, while also supporting demand flexibility and integration into the wider energy grid. By advancing digitalisation and intelligent energy management, SATO contributes to the EU’s goals for sustainability, efficiency, and climate resilience in the built environment.
CORE IC was heavily involved in the project, developing machine learning models to track the energy consumption of buildings, mapping out a commercialization strategy for the consortium, and managing communication and dissemination of project outcomes across the board.
Deriving the KPIs through consumption data
CORE developed machine learning models using detailed power consumption data to detect anomalies and assess performance for both appliance types. Household appliances power consumption data were resampled and processed with unsupervised machine learning techniques, such as autoencoders and variational autoencoders for model training. The models were trained to identify periods of abnormal operation by monitoring reconstruction errors, which increase when the model encounters data outside normal behavior. The model also focused on specific appliances, to provide suggestions at the micro level.
Regarding fridges, seasonal and weather variables were found to have little correlation with consumption, suggesting that fridge performance is more closely tied to internal or usage-related factors. For dishwashers, malfunctions may show up as longer runtimes and higher energy use, but program/load variability raises false-positives. From this work, a set of key performance indicators (KPIs) was developed, including fault-related alarms for energy and cost deviations, as well as resource-oriented measures such as energy per minute, daily use, daily cost, and averages of both energy and cost over time.
Anomaly points on fridge energy consumption data
Commercialisation phase
To ensure successful commercialisation, CORE IC developed an Innovation Strategy, focusing on clear value propositions and competition mapping. The main findings showed strong growth prospects for energy efficiency services in Europe, particularly in energy management software, which is expected to reach €4.1 billion by 2025.
Our innovation team developed business models, exploitation roadmaps, SWOT and cost-benefit analyses for three key project results: 1) SATO Consultant: Easy-to-use digital platform delivering real energy savings while maintaining comfort, 2) SATO Software Framework: A flexible toolset for developers and researchers to build upon, 3) Worten App: Real-time appliance monitoring for consumers and loyalty-building for retailers. Additionally, we created a replication plan for SATO’s results to reach TRL-9 which identifies key replication areas and building types, and a clear pathway to increase SATO’s market readiness with specific actions, funding sources, and addressing potential market barriers and drivers.
Communication and Dissemination
Finally, CORE led SATO’s communication and dissemination throughout the duration of the project. The CORE IC marketing & communications team was responsible for creating its visual identity, designing brochures, posters, infographics, and templates, and developing a coherent aesthetic across all outputs. Our team also built and maintained the project website as the main hub for information, ensuring clarity, interactivity, and regular updates.
Our social media team successfully managed social media accounts across different platforms (LinkedIn, X, YouTube), running campaigns and producing engaging visuals to boost visibility and stakeholder interaction. Across LinkedIn and X, SATO amassed over 2500 followers. On YouTube, our team was responsible for the creation of 11 project videos, with over 2800 views in total.
Alongside this, CORE coordinated newsletters, press releases, and event outreach, monitoring impact through KPIs such as website visits, social media growth, and subscriber numbers, using analytics to adapt strategies over time.
