"Nachhaltige Dienstleistungen für den Wohnungsmarkt in der Stadt der Zukunft"
Goals:
The main goal of the project is to stimulate the introduction of Sustainable Homeservices in Europe. Competition in the housing market is increasing. For organisations involved there are various ways to meet this competitive challenge. One of them is the extension of the supply of Homeservices to residents. So the principal target groups of the project are the residents, the intermediaries, such as the housings organisations, and the service providers.
Not every product can be replaced by a Homeservice. Residents’ demands and organisational and economical aspects of the suppliers and intermediaries need to be taken into account. Opportunities for Homeservices are provided by the project in six European countries: Austria, Finland, Germany, the Netherlands, Portugal and Spain. In addition to providing a national overview of those opportunities, six major cities and one town in each country is analysed in more detail.
Approach:
In the project we search for market niches in which the right conditions exist for Homeservices. The search is conducted in the following service areas:
-
- Counselling & Information
- Care & Supervision
- Leisure Time Services/Activities
- Repairs
- Mobility & Delivery
- Safety & Security
- Supply & Disposal
The present situation with respect to services is described in 12 municipalities in the six countries. The services have been evaluated using criteria of sustainability. Thereby three questions can be answered according to the three dimensions of sustainability: Environment - In what ways can services potentially contribute to reduction of materials and energy use in the housing sector? Social - How can services potentially increase the wellbeing of residents and households? Economic - How can these services be organised so that they are economically feasible both for providers and users, as well as society at large?
The project seeks to answer:
Which services are provided to the residents either by housing organisations or by external services providers?
Are these services sustainable according the three dimensions?
Which obstacles exist for the Homeservice to be provided?
How should the basic framework for the supply be arranged?
With which incentives can housing organisations be stimulated to provide services either by themselves or in co-operation with external service providers?
Results:
By answering these questions we aim to fulfil the following goals: Finding the current situation of environmentally or socially friendly services that are provided by housing organisations or other service providers;
Analysing the promoting and hindering factors in supplying a service from the view of housing organisations as well as residents Analysing employment effects and the social impact of the proposed services;
Comparing differences between small towns and big cities;
Comparing the national framework for sustainable Homeservices in the six contributing countries; Finding the national best practice examples that can be applied in other countries;
Creating policy recommendations and further promoting conditions on the European level;
Creating a European on-line Service Catalogue.
Dissemination:
The results of the study will be disseminated in three ways:
A website with the outcomes of the project;
A European Homeservice Catalogue of best-practice sustainable service examples;
Workshops with residents, providers, and intermediaries in the six countries.
A dissemination DVD on the projects findings.
The project is funded by the European Commission within the framework program for Research and Development: "City of
Tomorrow
”.
Project start: October 2002 Project end: September 2004
