Terms of use

License types: Commercial or academic

The nPro tool can be used with two license types:

• Commercial license (see pricing) or
• academic license (free of charge).

Both license types offer full tool functionality.

Overview of license types

*With a commercial single user license, nPro can be used to its full extent, i.e. an unlimited number of projects can be created and an unlimited number of simulations can be done. Please note that a separate user account and a separate single user license must be purchased for every user.

How much does a commercial license cost?

Pricing information can be found in our price sheet:

How do I purchase a commercial license?

If you want to use a commercial license, please contact us by email. You will then receive an offer/quotation and detailed information about our service, including detailed terms of use. Note that you can test nPro for three weeks free of charge (demo license). To use the free demo license you can register on "Create user account" (in the top right area on the tool page).

Is there a demo license for companies?

Yes, commercial users can register for nPro on the tool page (in the top right area on "Create user account") and use the tool free of charge for three weeks. After three weeks, the user account will be deactivated. You can then decide whether you want to purchase a regular commercial license or not.

What payment options are available?

After acceptance of our offer, you will receive an invoice. You can then pay by wire transfer/bank transfer. Please contact us if you would like to pay by credit card.

Overview of the usage options

How do I get an academic license?

To get an academic license, you only need to register on the academic tool page (please use your institution's email address if possible). The academic license is completely free of charge.

Can I use nPro without registering?

Yes, nPro can be used without registration, as well. The scope of functions is limited as follows:

• Projects cannot be saved or shared with other users.
• Load profiles cannot be downloaded (Load profiles & heat network module).
• User-defined load profiles cannot be uploaded (Energy hub module).

Who can use an academic license?

The academic license can only be used by faculty, students or staff of a recognized degree-granting academic institution, for example universities.

We ask other non-commercial users (for example other research institutions, non-profit organizations or registered associations) to contact us. In many cases, we can also grant an academic license (or a commercial license at a reduced price) to these users for specific projects. Private companies cannot use an academic license (not even for activities in publicly funded projects).

What may an academic license be used for?

The academic license allows degree-granting institutions the use of nPro in academic research and teaching, for example

• in publicly funded projects (for example, projects funded by the European Union or government agencies),
• for bachelor, master or doctoral theses,
• in lectures and exercises (please contact us in advance if you want to use nPro in large courses!),
• for non-profit/non-commercial projects.

What may an academic license not be used for?

Academic licenses may not be used for projects that are primarily funded by private companies/institutions and do not involve public funding. This includes for example

• contract research for companies or
• commercial consulting projects.

For these activities, a commercial license must be purchased. If you are unsure whether your project allows the use of an academic license, feel free to contact us.

Additional terms for users with academic license

By using nPro with an academic license, the user agrees that his or her institution may be publicly named as a user of the tool (especially on our website) and that we may use the institution's logo for this purpose. If you do not agree with this, please notify us by e-mail.

Cite nPro

In order to offer nPro free of charge to academic users, we rely on your cooperation. If you use nPro for your research, please cite us in your publications, posters, and presentations.

Citation template:

nPro - District Energy Planning Tool. Available online: https://www.npro.energy (Accessed on DD.MM.YYYY).

Bibtex:

@misc{npro.website,
    title = {nPro - District Energy Planning Tool},
    url = {https://www.npro.energy},
    note = {Accessed on DD.MM.YYYY}
}

Disclaimer

All nPro software services have been implemented with the greatest possible care and are based on the current state of the art. A liability for the accuracy and completeness of the calculation methods and results cannot be provided despite careful examination. The operator of npro.energy provides in particular no liability for any damages resulting from the direct or indirect use of the offered contents. The user of the software services explicitly waives all claims - of any kind whatsoever - against the provider of the site. This applies in particular to damage caused by harmful code (virus attack), hacker attack, software errors or data loss. Furthermore, the provider of nPro.energy is not liable for consequential damages such as lost profits, unrealized savings or claims by third parties. The nPro software services are provided "as is". Provider makes no other warranties, express or implied, and hereby disclaims all implied warranties, including warranties of capability and suitability for a particular purpose.