In our last blog we talked about how Heating as a Service (HaaS) is being explored as a way to drive decarbonisation. Now, it seems, commercial and public buildings could be embracing Cooling as a Service (CaaS).

Whereas trials in HaaS have largely focused on the domestic market, CaaS has airports, hospitals and offices in its sights in an effort to drive large scale sustainability.

CaaS works in a similar way to heating ‘servitisation’. Cooling functions are supplied on a whole service basis rather than the end user purchasing the ventilation or air conditioning system, plus a service package and then paying for the energy on top.

The model is already widely used in the technology sector where Software as a Service (SaaS) allows end users to adopt highly sophisticated state-of-the-art products in an affordable and managed way. Their monthly fee will cover support, maintenance and regular updates to the product they are using. It also means they can upgrade more easily and keep ahead of the curve.

The motivation for CaaS is that large buildings such as airports, supermarkets, schools, hotels and hospitals will be able to adopt the very latest energy efficient technology far more quickly if they are paying a monthly fee rather than having to consider upfront capital expenditure. The new systems incorporate smart technology that ensures buildings are not using more energy than they absolutely need to. This keeps the running costs and environmental impact to a minimum.

With so much innovation currently going on in the HVAC sector, another big benefit of CaaS is that manufacturers are incentivised to develop more efficient products that generate lower monthly costs for clients and therefore have wider appeal.

At a time when air quality and virus prevention are high on the agenda for every organisation, CaaS seems to be coming along at just the right time.

You may also be interested in our article about the role of HVAC in decarbonising a nation

Read more about how Covid-19 has reinvented the ventilation sector​