Innovation

75F’s business innovation is their interconnected smart technology and building management systems that help make commercial buildings “..up to 50% more efficient.” They use wireless sensors, cloud-based software, and edge devices throughout a building to provide their customers with an affordable way to proactively manage their HVAC needs. These smart sensors and modules connect to the HVAC products that are already in use within these buildings and connect to mobile devices and the cloud to increase efficiency. They have also developed software to make continual micro-adjustments and optimize comfort throughout a space, as well as to identify offices or rooms with poor air quality and equipment like rooftop units or chillers that are nearing failure, reducing cost throughout the system.

These products increase efficiency from a variety of sources, but some direct examples of these from the company’s website are: predicting rush hour and starting to cool the kitchen, dimming the office lights when the sun is out, and using fresh outside air to provide free cooling for stuffy buildings. 75F has a big initiative to maximize the amount of natural airflow in their spaces so that they can use less energy in the overall process of heating and cooling these large commercial buildings. These are also some of the major selling points of this company and the benefits of its innovation.

The innovation emerged when Deepinder Singh, the company’s founder, realized that current HVAC systems were wildly inefficient. He set out to make them more efficient using low-cost connected technologies, and the VP of Global Marketing David Koerner, our interviewee, said that the idea of sustainability was “100% there at 75F’s inception.” After multiple iterations and failures, the founder finally created a more intelligent system of heating and cooling spaces, as well as seeing the temperature and indoor air quality throughout a building in real-time. 75F started out small but has been growing and getting increasing coverage, recognition, and industry awards ever since.

Inspiration

Deepinder first realized that the current HVAC system was massively inefficient when he “awoke to find out that the temperature in his daughter’s bedroom had dropped by an incredible 10 degrees during the night and made it nearly impossible for her to sleep.” After remedying the problem on his own so that his daughter could sleep during Minnesota’s cold winter months, he realized the energy and environmental savings that could be achieved by deploying smarter HVAC controls on a global scale. Using his technical background as a network engineer, he then designed the smart system that is changing the way HVAC is used in the world today.

Deepinder’s innovation utilizes machine learning algorithms to examine over a million data points per fifty thousand square feet of installed space each day and to merge historic thermal patterns and third-party weather forecasts to create a dynamic digital twin of a building. This cloud intelligence then delivers hundreds of thousands of individual decisions to automate and control the heating and cooling of these buildings. Their software and tech combine to make the entire HVAC systems of the buildings that they are in smarter, saving hundreds of thousands of dollars and millions of tons of carbon in the process.

Many companies set out to disrupt their industries. A hundred years ago, Henry Ford laid out a vision of “a car in every garage,” and used innovative new technologies to reshape transportation and make that dream a reality—even if it wasn’t always a Ford. 75F has a similar vision: Their stated goal is to put an IoT-based building management system in every commercial building in America by 2030—and to work with both competitors and partners to make businesses and communities more healthy, efficient, and comfortable in the process.

Overall impact

75F’s smart technology innovation benefits society by saving businesses money and reducing commercial buildings’ carbon footprint. First, this innovation saves businesses money by decreasing their HVAC and overall energy consumption expenses. The company touts that their smart technology “results in a typical payback period of less than 2 years.” Third-party testing by the National Renewable Energy Lab and case studies from large customers around the world back up these claims.

The main environmental benefit is the massive reduction in the carbon footprint of commercial buildings that 75F services. Commercial buildings are the “fourth-largest contributor to carbon emissions in the world, only after agriculture, transportation, and residential homes, accounting for 20% of all emissions worldwide.” Half of that, or an estimated 570 million metric tons of carbon dioxide per year, is used to heat and cool commercial spaces, often simultaneously in different parts of a building and despite being unoccupied a majority of the time. That is what makes 75F’s innovation so valuable, because they increase the efficiency of the building’s use of resources as a whole.

Business benefit

75F has grown from just over 15 employees in 2016, to almost 200 full-time employees currently on staff. They have also raised over $22 million in series A funding from some of the biggest names in technology, including Bill Gates’ Breakthrough Venture Investments. This fund is supported by leading executives and philanthropists such as Bill Gates, Jeff Bezos, Michael Bloomberg, Jack Ma, and others. The company closed the largest series A in Minnesota history and is an example of the growing cleantech industry, the new power of Midwest startups, and the many outstanding advances occurring in the IoT space.

75F has expanded from Minnesota to India and Singapore, two markets where they see an incredible opportunity for growth and was recently added to the 2021 Global Cleantech Top 100 Company list. This recognition only goes out to companies with innovations that have the potential to make a real difference in combating the climate crisis. This distinction benefits the business by providing significant positive exposure to to 75F.

Social and environmental benefit

75F’s mission is to make commercial buildings work better. This means finding ways to making tenants in the buildings that they operate in more comfortable, healthy, and productive. 75F has had a large impact on their customers by saving energy. When a company cuts back on energy use, they also reduce their carbon emissions which help stop global warming. This is a great impact as buildings produce 40% of carbon emissions worldwide. 75F has made its mark by helping clients reduce their carbon footprints while also saving them.

The processes created by 75F can make commercial buildings up to “50% more efficient.” Deployed on a global scale, this could result in a 5% reduction in carbon emissions without significant investments or new infrastructure. This is the equivalent of:

● Shutting down 360 coal plants

● Taking 277 million cars off of the road

● Keep 3 billion barrels of oil in the ground

Interview

David Kroener, VP of Global Marketing