Smarter Heat for a Cooler Planet
Vantaan Energia is on a mission to become the leading circular energy company in the Nordics by 2035. But reaching this ambition calls for collaboration, and that starts with better customer relationships.
To support this transformation, Kuudes and Vantaan Energia launched a strategic service development project focused on a key customer group: housing companies. The goal? Make Vantaan Energia’s heating services more understandable, value-driven and customer-centric. The result wasn’t just an improved service offering, it was the birth of a completely new solution.
INDUSTRY
Energy
MARKET
Finland
WHAT WE DID
Consumer insights, qualitative research, concept development
Understanding customers, uncovering opportunity
The project kicked off with in-depth interviews with property managers, board members of housing companies and real estate investors. The rising cost of energy, economic uncertainty and complex technical options made heating choices more stressful than ever. Still, there was genuine interest in new energy ideas and in the energy company’s role as a problem-solver.
Smart design, smarter systems
Kuudes and Vantaan Energia ideated and validated new value-added services that aligned with three core customer needs: cost savings, sustainability, and peace of mind. But as we tested these concepts, the spotlight shifted toward the most powerful lever for change: smart automation in heating systems. In collaboration with Valor, a company specialized in heating business models, the potential of intelligent, large-scale heating optimization was explored. Simulations showed it could drastically reduce energy consumption and system-wide peak consumption, benefiting both individual households and the energy grid. The outcome of the project is Smart District Heating (Älykäs Kaukolämpö)—a new service for Vantaan Energia’s residential customers.
Meet Smart District Heating
1
Automatically adjusts heating based on weather forecasts and building-specific preferences
2
Improves indoor comfort while reducing heat loss and costs
3
Enables remote monitoring, minimizing the need for on-site maintenance and flagging potential malfunctions before they become real problems
Impact:
Since launch, over 400 housing companies in Vantaa have adopted the service. Together, they’ve saved 6,500 MWh of energy—the equivalent of more than 32 million kilometres driven in an electric car. That’s over 800 trips around the globe.
Smart District Heating isn’t just a smart solution—it’s a simple climate act that pays off.
6,500 MWh
Of energy saved, or in other words…
32M km
Driven in an electric car
800
Trips around the globe
Result
“Kuudes brought a truly strategic and human-centred approach to the table. Their ability to translate deep customer insight into actionable service concepts—and to pivot when complexity demanded it—was instrumental in helping us create a solution that delivers real value for both our customers and our business.”
Esa Helteenvuori
Product and Service Development Manager