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Fair Meter
Published on 07 March 2018
Netherlands
Noord-Holland
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About this good practice
In 2013 the special initiative ‘Green Deal Fair Meter’ started with social enterprises Waag, Amsterdam Smart City and the Dutch government. Four Dutch utilities for the development of a common sustainability strategy in smart metering, Liander, Stedin, Enduris and Westland Infra, manage 70 per cent of the Dutch electricity market and are aiming to install up to 2,5 million smart meters into their networks by 2020. The aim of the initiative was to ensure that these meters will not only be smart but also fair, considering their environmental and social aspects. The initiative of Green Public Procurement led to a 12-month tender process that selected Iskraemeco as one of the developers of the Fair Meter.
The Fair Meter project addresses all major issues that the electronic industry is facing today: energy intensity, labour standards, use of conflict materials (3TG), material scarcity and E-waste. The goal of the GP is to tackle the above issues by implementing transparency throughout the supply chain, developing higher standards in the industry and lower exposure to risks in volatile material markets globally. As part of the project, Iskraemeco is developing a Transparency Tool that is an application that aims at teaching, educating and raising awareness and responsibilities to communities, consumers, industries and general public.
The main stakeholders involved in this project are the Dutch customers and the companies that are part of the Iskraemeco supply chain.
The Fair Meter project addresses all major issues that the electronic industry is facing today: energy intensity, labour standards, use of conflict materials (3TG), material scarcity and E-waste. The goal of the GP is to tackle the above issues by implementing transparency throughout the supply chain, developing higher standards in the industry and lower exposure to risks in volatile material markets globally. As part of the project, Iskraemeco is developing a Transparency Tool that is an application that aims at teaching, educating and raising awareness and responsibilities to communities, consumers, industries and general public.
The main stakeholders involved in this project are the Dutch customers and the companies that are part of the Iskraemeco supply chain.
Expert opinion
This is an inspiring initiative that aims to support not only the improvement of energy efficiency though development of smart grids but also to ensure that the smart meters are produced in an environmentally-friendly and socially responsible way. The practice has high transferability potential due to its progressive features such as development of sustainability strategy in smart metering and embedding circularity into the procurement process. Tools like Fair Ladder and Transparency Tool can be interesting for relevant stakeholders elsewhere.
Resources needed
The Fair Meter project started in 2013 thanks to the special initiative called a ‘Green Deal Fair Meter’, promoted by Waag, Amsterdam Smart City and the Dutch government. The total contract is worth about 470 million €.
Evidence of success
Since at the end of the year 2016 a first prototype was developed, it is not possible to describe fully fledged results of the GP. However, at the end of the project 2.5 millions of Fair Meters will be produced and the results are expected to be significant both in terms of the reduced environmental burden during the production phase and improved social fairness along the production line, as well as the reduced energy use due to the use of the Fair Meters.
Potential for learning or transfer
The main vehicle which makes this transfer possible is the Sustainable public procurement concept which, in addition to the environmental criteria encompasses also the social criteria. Even the two tools Fair Ladder and Transparency Tool could be used by the interested actors. The area where Iskraemeco works is relatively rigid in terms of changing and adjusting legal framework. Majority of their work is obtained through public procurement and the introduction of the circularity into the criteria is a lengthy procedure. One of the challenges is also the dissemination of the awareness among all the stakeholders on the market (regulating institutions, electro distributors, suppliers, producers, end users, experts) and their networking, which is essential in this case. As producers, Iskraemeco is very much dependent on their suppliers and their readiness to share the information about the origin of certain materials. Also here, the education is very important.
Further information
Website
Good practice owner
You can contact the good practice owner below for more detailed information.
Organisation
Iskraemeco
Slovenia
Zahodna Slovenija
Contact
Undersecretary / Project officer