German researchers have taken to the skies in a bid to find which buildings can be easily powered by the sun. Thanks to the Network, the idea has spread to Austria, where an entrepreneur is using it to carry out solar analyses for new clients.

Researchers at the University of Applied Sciences in Osnabrück have developed a computer-aided method for detecting which buildings in an area can accommodate solar power. The ‘Sun-AREA’ research project calculates the solar power potential for every roof within a given area. It's supported by EU Structural Funds.

From a plane with an on-board camera, researchers use special laser scanners to calculate each roof’s angle and alignment, and shadows cast by every chimney. The result is a detailed map, pinpointing the solar potential of all residential, commercial and public buildings. “Once we finished the project, the next step was to find a commercial application,” says Dorothea Ludwig, head of the Sun-Area North research team.

She contacted her local Enterprise Europe Network branch, an EU business support network spanning close to 600 partner organisations in 50 countries. Network expert Svenja Knüppe, based in the same university, helped to write a technology profile and inserted it into the Network’s powerful technology transfer database.

Within only two months, an expression of interest came from long-time Austrian Network client Günther Gleixner, whose Graz-based SME Grintec GmbH specialises in software solutions for power supply and telecommunications.

“The technology database is an effective multiplier,” says Knüppe. In Austria, Gleixner received the profile from Gabriele Schmied, Network project manager with the Steirische Wirtschaftsf örderungsgesellschaft, also in Graz.

Following a June 2009 cooperation agreement, Grintec is now preparing solar maps for South Tyrol, Italy and a handful of Austrian regions. After footing the initial bill for the solar mapping, local authorities – as well as residents and companies – can then decide whether to invest in photovoltaic energy.

“Given the potential environmental benefits, it’s a win-win situation for everybody,” says Schmied.