SCB16-4
Modelling of shared infrastructures at the level of a city block
Objectives
The purpose of the MFE is to develop a technical model for shared infrastructures at the level of a city block
located in Uccle. The goal is to determine and model, based on the requirements of the inhabitants, shared
infrastructures such as kitchen, offices, shared spaces, vehicles, water recycling, etc.
The proposed subject is part of a 5 year ULB research project called “Smart City Block” funded by GDF SUEZ
Electrabel. An overall description of this multidisciplinary project is available on http://www.smartcityblock.be
The thesis includes the following tasks:

Analyse the possible solutions starting from a catalogue of available solutions (see
http://www.smartcityblock.be/fr-BE/Home/Filter/3) and the available master thesis on the subject.

Participate at the co-elaboration meetings with the inhabitants of the city block, which will occur
between September and December 2015, as to fully understand the needs of the inhabitants.

Model for the specific needs of the selected city block located in Uccle

Interface with a SBS-EM master thesis student covering economical and financial aspects

Interact with the SCB coordination team and with the inhabitants of a city block in order to come with
a realistic and practical solution

Ideally, the provided model should serve for dimensioning a real system
Smart City Block Background
Increasing the rate of renovation for the existing building stock is a crucial challenge for EU’s energy policy. The
Smart City Block (SCB) project proposes an innovative answer to this challenge. The underlying hypothesis is
that introducing a collective dimension to renovation should result in increasing rates of renovation while also
impacting positively social ties within urban areas. However, the collective dimension introduced in the project
is challenging for western individualistic minds. In order to evaluate the acceptance of households, a survey
was conducted on 4 city blocks in Brussels, representing over 450 households. A clear willingness to discuss
further exists in some segments but only if more concrete proposals with estimations of energy and financial
savings are provided.
At the end of 2014, a site was set up (www.smartcityblock.be) and a “call for project” was launched in order to
select one city block out of the 3.500 block of the city of Brussels. A city block in Uccle is now selected and the
next step is to model innovative solutions on that specific block.