Our vision is to simplify, accelerate, and standardize the planning process for districts and buildings with the help of tailor-made software solutions. We focus on the early planning phase of district solutions and develop software tools that combine proven design methods, innovative optimization algorithms, and an intuitive user interface. This enables engineers to quickly and easily design and energy systems for buildings and districts and evaluate them from a techno-economic perspective.

What makes nPro unique?

There are already numerous tools for energy system planning, some of which are based on very detailed calculation models. However, these tools are often only used by experts who have either spent a long time getting familiar with them or have been involved in their development. In contrast, nPro is a user-friendly software designed for a broad range of users and is specifically used in the early planning phase of projects.

With nPro, we combine proven calculation methods with a user-friendly interface and intuitive usability. What also makes nPro unique is its focus on the calculation and design of heating and cooling networks as well as 5GDHC/anergy networks, utilizing innovative calculation procedures from the field of mathematical optimization.

Powerful design algorithm

ChatGPT or Google demonstrate what modern algorithms are capable of today: Search engines can filter relevant content from billions of web pages in fractions of a second. The optimization algorithm in nPro works in a similar way: Out of millions of possible energy system configurations, the optimal configuration and design can be determined within seconds. The nPro algorithm sets up a system of equations with tens of thousands (sometimes millions!) of variables and solves it in a matter of seconds.

Our specialty: 5GDHC (anergy) networks

5GDHC networks are a promising and innovative technology for the energy transition in many ways. However, planning and simulating them is significantly more complex than with conventional heating networks. With nPro, we offer a unique tool that automates the essential calculation steps.

Excel is not a simulation software

Certainly, Excel is the engineer's darling - especially when it comes to the planning and design of energy systems. However, it is often no longer sufficient to look at just single design points, especially when renewable energies play a central role. Therefore, energy systems need to be considered for an entire year - often with an hourly resolution. Excel spreadsheets quickly become large and unhandy in these cases. nPro helps to explore new paths in the planning process. The software processes time series with hourly resolution, simulates and balances complex energy flows, and automates the visualization of results. This saves a lot of time and work.

Science meets practice

At nPro, we aim to incorporate the latest scientific findings and calculation methods into our tool development. In this way, we want to bring science and planning practice closer together and introduce the cutting-edge calculation methods into application. You can view our scientific contributions and publications here.

About the founder of nPro

nPro Energy was founded by Dr. Marco Wirtz. To develop the nPro software, he brought in his many years of experience in the field of district and heating network planning as well as his expertise in the field of mathematical optimization methods. He studied Mechanical Engineering and Energy Engineering at RWTH Aachen University in Germany and subsequently worked as a research assistant at the Institute for Energy Efficient Buildings and Indoor Climate at RWTH Aachen University. Here he conducted research on the topic of innovative heating networks and district solutions and received his doctorate with the dissertation topic "Design and Dimensioning Methods for District Energy Systems with 5th Generation District Heating and Cooling Networks". He is the author of numerous scientific publications on the topics of 5GDHC networks and mathematical optimization for energy system design.

Education and research

RWTH Aachen (Germany)
Iowa State University (USA)
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA)
Siemens AG (Germany)
Plataforma Solar de Almería (Spain)
German Aerospace Center

Awards

Spin-off Award of RWTH Aachen
Springorum Coin of RWTH Aachen
Dean's List of RWTH Aachen
The German Scholarship
RWTH Research Ambassador Scholarship
Several international scholarships

Marco Wirtz has dedicated himself to the development and dissemination of 5GDHC networks (cold district heating). With his expertise in the field of 5GDHC networks, he is a sought-after expert and speaker at professional conferences. He has an internationally recognized expertise in the field of mathematical optimization and is a reviewer for scientific articles in international journals.

Author in scientific journals

Energy
Applied Energy
Energy Technology
Energy and Buildings
Energy Conversion and Management

Selected scientific presentations

International ECOS Conference
CISBAT Conference, Switzerland
German Geothermal Congress
European Geothermal Congress
Clúster de l'Energia Eficient de Catalunya

History of nPro

The idea for the development of nPro had Marco Wirtz: As a research assistant at RWTH Aachen University, he delved deep into the world of numerical calculation and simulation methods for the planning of energy systems. He gained versatile experience in the field of district planning in numerous research projects. In this way, he gained a deep insight into the methods of academic research and, on the other hand, a broad overview of practical planning approaches that are used in engineering offices. He noticed a large discrepancy between the simulation and optimization tools in science and the pragmatic approaches of project planners. He noticed that there was a lack of suitable tools that, on the one hand, provide practical answers to complex planning problems and, on the other hand, are also easy to use in everyday planning. The decisive impetus for the development of nPro came from a research stay in Berkeley, California (USA): He was not only able to deepen his expertise in the field of optimization methods, but also came into contact with the lively startup culture of Silicon Valley. Here he got the idea to develop a web-based calculation tool - the idea for nPro was born.

Our offer

With the nPro planning tool, we offer a unique software solution that supports district and heat network planning. In addition, we are interested in collaborations, especially if you ...

need specific planning support for your district project,
want to integrate your own products into our software,
require a customized software solution for your company,
are interested in a joint research or development project,
need advice in the field of 5GDHC networks, or
would like to use our simulation and optimization algorithms via an API interface.

Who uses nPro?

nPro is aimed at planning offices, energy suppliers, municipal utilities, and project developers involved in the planning and design of district solutions. nPro is a web-based software that can be used from anywhere and at any time over the Internet. Currently, more than 2000 users from over 40 countries have registered for nPro.