De bedragen die ondernemingen betalen voor de officikle sponsoring rechten van mondiale topsportevenementen zijn in een relatief korte periode explosief gegroeid. Deze groei is voor een belangrijk deel te wijten aan het toenemend belang van sponsoring van belangrijke topsportevenementen en het beperkte aanbod van deze evenementen. Tal van ondernemingen die niet tot dit selecte gezelschap behoren zien echter ook de communicatiemogelijkheden van deze evenementen. Dit betekent dat ondernemingen manieren zijn gaan bedenken om toch vooral de suggestie te wekken dat er een sponsorrelatie bestaat met deze evenementen. Deze methoden zijn ook bekend als ambush marketing.
The Johan Cruijff ArenA (JC ArenA) is a big events location in Amsterdam, where national and international football matches, concerts and music festivals take place for up to 68,000 visitors. The JC ArenA is already one of the most sustainable, multi-functional stadia in the world and is realizing even more inspiring smart energy solutions for the venue, it’s visitors and neighbourhood. The JC ArenA presents a complex testbed for innovative energy services, with a consumption of electricity comparable to a district of 2700 households. Thanks to the 1 MWp solar installation on the roof of the venue, the JC ArenA already produces around 8% of the electricity it needs, the rest is by certified regional wind energy.Within the Seev4-City project the JC ArenA has invested in a 3 MW/2.8 MWh battery energy storage system, 14 EV charging stations and one V2G charging unit. The plan was to construct the 2.8 MWh battery with 148 2nd life electric car batteries, but at the moment of realisation there were not enough 2nd life EV batteries available, so 40% is 2nd life. The JC ArenA experienced compatibility issues installing a mix of new and second-life batteries. Balancing the second-life batteries with the new batteries proved far more difficult than expected because an older battery is acting different compared to new batteries.The EV-based battery energy storage system is unique in that it combines for the first time several applications and services in parallel. Main use is for grid services like Frequency Containment Reserve, along with peak shaving, back-up services, V2G support and optimization of PV integration. By integrating the solar panels, the energy storage system and the (bi-directional) EV chargers electric vehicles can power events and be charged with clean energy through the JC ArenA’s Energy Services. These and other experiences and results can serve as a development model for other stadiums worldwide and for use of 2nd life EV batteries.The results of the Seev4-City project are also given in three Key Performance Indicators (KPI): reduction of CO2-emission, increase of energy autonomy and reduction in peak demand. The results for the JC ArenA are summarised in the table below. The year 2017 is taken as reference, as most data is available for this year. The CO2 reductions are far above target thanks to the use of the battery energy storage system for FCR services, as this saves on the use of fossil energy by fossil power plants. Some smaller savings are by replacement of ICEby EV. Energy autonomy is increased by better spreading of the PV generated, over 6 instead of 4 of the 10 transformers of the JC ArenA, so less PV is going to the public grid. A peak reduction of 0.3 MW (10%) is possible by optimal use of the battery energy storage system during the main events with the highest electricity demand.
Denim Democracy from the Alliance for Responsible Denim (ARD) is an interactive exhibition that celebrates the journey and learning of ARD members, educates visitors about sustainable denim and highlights how companies collaborate together to achieve results. Through sight, sound and tactile sensations, the visitor experiences and fully engages sustainable denim production. The exhibition launches in October 2018 in Amsterdam and travels to key venues and locations in the Netherlands until April 2019. As consumers, we love denim but the denim industry, like other sub-sectors in the textile, apparel and footwear industries, faces many complex sustainability challenges and has been criticized for its polluting and hazardous production practices. The Alliance for Responsible Denim project brought leading denim brands, suppliers and stakeholders together to collectively address these issues and take initial steps towards improving the ecological sustainability impact of denim production. Sustainability challenges are considered very complex and economically undesirable for individual companies to address alone. In denim, small and medium sized denim firms face specific challenges, such as lower economies of scale and lower buying power to affect change in practices. There is great benefit in combining denim companies' resources and knowledge so that collective experimentation and learning can lift the sustainability standards of the industry and lead to the development of common standards and benchmarks on a scale that matters. If meaningful, transformative industrial change is to be made, then it calls for collaboration between denim industry stakeholders that goes beyond supplier-buyer relations and includes horizontal value chain collaboration of competing large and small denim brands. However collaboration between organizations, and especially between competitors, is highly complex and prone to failure. The research behind the Alliance for Responsible Denim project asked a central research question: how do competitors effectively collaborate together to create common, industry standards on resource use and benchmarks for improved ecological sustainability? To answer this question, we used a mixed-method, action research approach. The Alliance for Responsible Denim project mobilized and facilitated denim brands to collectively identify ways to reduce the use of water and chemicals in denim production and then aided them to implement these practices individually in their respective firms.
The European creative visual industry is undergoing rapid technological development, demanding solid initiatives to maintain a competitive position in the marketplace. AVENUE, a pan-European network of Centres of Vocational Excellence, addresses this need through a collaboration of five independent significant ecosystems, each with a smart specialisation. AVENUE will conduct qualified industry-relevant research to assess, analyse, and conclude on the immediate need for professional training and educational development. The primary objective of AVENUE is to present opportunities for immediate professional and vocational training, while innovating teaching and learning methods in formal education, to empower students and professionals in content creation, entrepreneurship, and innovation, while supporting sustainability and healthy working environments. AVENUE will result in a systematised upgrade of workforce to address the demand for new skills arising from rapid technological development. Additionally, it will transform the formal education within the five participating VETs, making them able to transition from traditional artistic education to delivering skills, mindsets and technological competencies demanded by a commercial market. AVENUE facilitates mobility, networking and introduces a wide range of training formats that enable effective training within and across the five ecosystems. A significant portion of the online training is Open Access, allowing professionals from across Europe to upgrade their skills in various processes and disciplines. The result of AVENUE will be a deep-rooted partnership between five strong ecosystems, collaborating to elevate the European industry. More than 2000 professionals, employees, students, and young talents will benefit from relevant and immediate upgrading of competencies and skills, ensuring that the five European ecosystems remain at the forefront of innovation and competitiveness in the creative visual industry.
Verduurzaming van de chemische en landbouwsector is essentieel om de klimaat- en circulaire doelstellingen te halen. Eén van de mogelijkheden om de chemische sector te vergroenen is om hernieuwbare grondstoffen als feedstock voor productie te gebruiken. Met name laagwaardige reststromen uit de agrarische sector komen hiervoor in aanmerking. In dit project wordt beoogd om koeienurine, die gescheiden is opgevangen van de ontlasting, te valoriseren richting hoogwaardige componenten voor (fijn)chemie en meststoffen. De focus zal in eerste instantie liggen op de isolatie van hippuurzuur en hieruit te synthetiseren benzoëzuur en glycine en de verwaarding van de resterende fractie richting natuurlijke meststoffen (kalium en ureum) voor de akker/tuinbouw. Het verkregen groene benzoëzuur is een goed alternatief voor het huidige uit de petrochemie gesynthetiseerde zuur en kan bijvoorbeeld als natuurlijk conserveringsmiddel in mengvoeders worden gebruikt. In een latere fase zullen ook overige waardevolle componenten (allantoine, creatinine, creatine, etc.) uit urine van koeien worden geïsoleerd en gevaloriseerd. Een succesvol project draagt bij aan het verbeteren van de business case van veetelers en maakt de scheiding van urine en ontlasting in de stallen aantrekkelijker. Additionele revenuen die uit de bioraffinage van urine worden verkregen kunnen gebruikt worden om de gedane investeringen in het “koeientoilet” terug te verdienen. De scheiding van urine en ontlasting levert een significante reductie in ammoniak-emissies op en draagt hiermee bij aan het oplossen van het “stikstofprobleem”. Reductie van CO2 wordt o.a. bewerkstelligd door verminderd gebruik van kunstmest en vervanging van uit de petrochemie afkomstige chemicaliën (benzoëzuur) door synthese uit natuurlijke (hernieuwbare) grondstoffen.
