Who actually says that heating always has to be inefficient and expensive? INCONSU from Nottuln develops digital solutions for controlling heating systems. The aim is to manage energy use in buildings more effectively and reduce running costs. This story shows how founder Flynn Herbst turned an idea that originated within his family into a solution for use in municipal buildings.
Flynn Herbst is 31, comes from Nottuln and realised at an early age: “I want to start my own business! Not because I don’t want to work, but because I want the freedom to decide how and on what I work.” With this clear mindset, Flynn sought and found his path. After studying business administration with a focus on international trade in Hamburg, he was drawn back to the Münsterland region. As an IT consultant in the healthcare sector, he gained his first experience in project management. But the desire to run his own business remained.
The spark of inspiration came from his family: his father and uncle were building a house – complete with a smart-home system. The only problem was that the systems available on the market weren’t up to scratch. So Flynn worked with them to develop his own system. The prototype in the four-family house eventually gave rise to a business idea that is now being further developed for use in municipal buildings as well.
Flynn's young company INCONSU relies on a combination of hardware and software to heat buildings as required. For example, schools or administrative buildings. The software combines three central functions that were previously usually only available individually: room-specific control, which only heats a room when it is actually being used; hydraulic balancing, which ensures that all rooms are heated evenly and efficiently; and automatic adjustment of the flow temperature - i.e. the temperature of the heating water that flows from the boiler into the radiators. This makes heating systems significantly more efficient - without any loss of utilisation.
A practical example shows how this works: In a primary school in Nordkirchen, the software accesses the digital room allocation plan via an interface. This shows which rooms are used at which times, for example "meeting room 1" in the morning and/or "meeting room 2" in the evening. Accordingly, the system regulates the heating output to suit the actual times of use. The temperature is automatically lowered before and after occupancy. This avoids unnecessary energy consumption. This principle can be flexibly transferred to many scenarios.
The INCONSU system has a major technical advantage over other solutions: the LoRaWAN wireless technology it uses enables an extremely long range for data transmission. This is ideal for sprawling or labyrinthine buildings such as schools, town halls or large office complexes. Whilst conventional systems often rely on interference-prone Wi-Fi or short-range wireless technologies, the connection with INCONSU remains stable even across several storeys. Even if the internet or Wi-Fi fails, the control system continues to operate reliably. A real bonus in day-to-day local government operations.
According to INCONSU, pilot projects carried out with the municipalities of Nordkirchen and Nottuln achieved heating cost savings of up to 40 per cent. The stated payback period is three to four years. In addition, the system is designed to reduce energy consumption.
With the support of Münster University of Applied Sciences and an EXIST start-up grant, Flynn's idea took off. Regional players such as Westfalen AG and the REACH - EUREGIO Start-up Centre also became aware of the project early on.
Today, Flynn runs the company as the sole founder with a small team and great commitment. The vision: "We want to show that digitalisation and energy efficiency are not a contradiction in terms. And that smart building control also works in older existing buildings."
Looking back, Flynn gained valuable experience along the way. Particularly important: learning early on that you shouldn't ignore a bad gut feeling. Be it in team decisions or in the product development process. Addressing problems openly and not putting them off can save a lot of energy and time. He also advises testing market demand as early as possible, preferably before the start of development. After all, if you spend six months tinkering with a solution without knowing whether anyone really needs it, you run the risk of failing to meet demand. Last but not least, the team should talk openly about goals, expectations and their own motivation: Who wants to invest how much time, how do you feel about investors, what is the long-term vision? Clarifying these questions early on creates a solid basis - even for turbulent phases.
