Company: INOVUES
Company Description: INOVUES’ non-invasive window retrofit innovations make it possible and cost-effective to upfit building facades with the latest energy-saving and smart glass technologies, without replacement or disruption. Our high-ROI, low-carbon solutions help building owners save up to 40% on energy consumption, improve indoor thermal and acoustical comfort, and increase the value of the building.
Nomination Category: Company / Organization Categories
Nomination Sub Category: Energy Industry Innovation of the Year
 Nomination Title: Upcycled Building Facades
- Which will you submit for your nomination in this category, a video of up to five (5) minutes in length about the achievements of the nominated organization since 1 January 2021, OR written answers to the questions for this category? (Choose one):
A video of up to five (5) minutes
- If you are submitting a video of up to five (5) minutes in length, provide the URL of the nominated video here, OR attach it to your entry via the "Add Attachments, Videos, or Links to This Entry" link above, through which you may also upload a copy of your video.
Video: https://youtu.be/nXm6ZEnc0gE
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this first question: Briefly describe the nominated organization: its history and past performance (up to 200 words):
Total 193 words used.
Did you know 40% of global CO2 emissions come from the built environment and nearly 70% of all existing buildings today have thermally-inefficient windows? The energy reduction benefits of facade upgrades are irrefutable, but they have historically been too costly and disruptive to contemplate. Enter five-year-old VC-backed INOVUES.
INOVUES provides the only patented retrofit solution in its class to transform existing facades to the latest energy-saving and smart-glass innovations, without removal or replacement. As the sole provider of renewable facade retrofit technologies, we offer building owners high-ROI, low-carbon solutions to save up to 40% on energy consumption, improve indoor thermal and acoustic comfort, and increase the value of building assets. Our innovative retrofit systems provide the same benefits as full replacement with up to 10x faster payback.
Among our backers is the 350-year-old, global building technology leader Saint-Gobain. INOVUES has received multiple national and international awards for its climate-tech and was featured in Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy Climate Action Playbook. Our signature product has been installed on buildings throughout the U.S., including at 3M's global headquarters, and commercial real estate leaders are increasingly seeing the high impact of our future-proofing retrofit solutions.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this second question: Outline the organization's achievements since the beginning of 2021 that you wish to bring to the judges' attention (up to 250 words):
Total 233 words used.
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Raised $2.75M seed funding to refine signature product, introduce new interior window retrofit product, and grow team. Saint-Gobain, VC Fuel, Fund4SE, Momentum Glass, Lateral Capital, E8 Angels are among our backers.
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Developed first-of-its-kind prototype for non-invasive building-integrated photovoltaic retrofits.
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Signed bilateral agreement with one of the world's largest commercial real estate companies, managing 4.6B sq. ft. of properties.
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Winner in the Grid Catalyst Energy Startup Cohort 2022, resulting in two pilot projects — at University of Minnesota and 3M.
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Completed first multiyear post-install study at Saint-Gobain's R&D campus in Boston, MA.
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Winner of 2023 Gold Stevie® American Business Award for Energy Industry Innovation of the Year.
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Became approved energy conservation measure provider for NYC Accelerator (NYC Mayor’s Office of Climate and Environmental Justice program) and Massachusetts Technical Assessment Committee (MTAC).
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Won 2023 NYC Accelerator Innovator award.
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Selected in US Green Building Council Los Angeles Net Zero Accelerator and Upward Lab’s Net Zero Accelerator 2022.
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Leading Cities QBE AcceliCITY Resilience Challenge Semi-Finalist 2022 for providing smart city solutions to address risk, equity, and sustainability in urban environments.
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High Impact Winner of CapitaLand Sustainability X Challenge 2021 out of 270 entries from 25 countries, resulting in pilot project in Portland OR area managed by Cushman & Wakefield, the leading global real estate services firm. Project is currently in M&V (measurement and verification) phase.
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Featured in Bill Gates' Breakthrough Energy 2021 Climate Action Playbook.
- If you are providing written answers for your submission, you must provide an answer to this third question: Explain why the achievements you have highlighted are unique or significant. If possible compare the achievements to the performance of other players in your industry and/or to the organization's past performance (up to 250 words):
Total 233 words used.
The window retrofit products currently available on the market provide very limited benefits (e.g., window films), or, like window inserts and storm windows, are not suitable for large-scale commercial buildings. INOVUES offers the only real alternative to facade/window replacement for a range of building types, from commercial, educational, healthcare, and hospitality to residential buildings.
In terms of product and technical differentiation, INOVUES’ patented Insulating Glass Retrofits (IGRs) are the only non-invasive system that can be installed externally or internally and creates a vapor-tight, sealed, desiccated thermal cavity between the original and newly-added glass, like factory-made insulating glass units (IGUs).
The past two years were the most significant in our history. We built collaborative relationships with leading organizations in the energy efficiency and commercial real estate spaces, including JLL, the Northwest Energy Efficiency Alliance (NEEA), the NYC Accelerator, Con Edison, and Mass Save, among others, to introduce our breakthrough products and overcome perceptions that all facade retrofits are inherently disruptive and unaffordable.
We also embarked on several new projects, developed a new patent-pending product, grew the team, and refined and expanded our go-to-market strategy. We led efforts to advance facade retrofits as a financially viable pathway to lower energy consumption and carbon emissions in existing buildings. In the process, we built a pipeline of potential retrofit projects that is currently the largest of any window retrofit company in Con Edison’s facade incentive program.
- You have the option to answer this final question: Reference any attachments of supporting materials throughout this nomination and how they provide evidence of the claims you have made in this nomination (up to 250 words):
Total 162 words used.
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