Hukka has been getting the people of Oulu moving for over 40 years. Hukka is made up of three properties: a sports center of about 10,000 square metres on Isokatu, and the smaller Alppila and Rotuaari Hukka Xpresses. Hukka offers its members the city’s most extensive opportunities for working out, from group exercise classes to events, from playing ball to going to the gym, and from coaching to virtual classes. There are a number of factors that must be taken into account from the point of view of energy consumption in the large and versatile spaces. 

For the past seven years, Jon Åström has worked as Hukka’s property manager. Åström is responsible for a broad range of things: He is responsible for the maintenance, design, and safety of the properties. Property maintenance, leasing, and property contracts such as energy services are other things that can be found on the property manager’s plate.

Åström has been using OE360 Mestari for over a year now. He says the service is clear and easy to use. 

“The OE360 service provides me with the necessary facts about the property’s water, electricity, and heat consumption. The consumption can be seen as tangible data, leaving nothing to speculation. The OE360 service has also made it easier to present consumption data, for example.”

The energy consumption at Hukka is varied

Around 800 members visit the Isokatu Hukka every day. At the weekly level, the number tops over 5,500 visitors. The members expend their energy in a wide variety of activities on the ball courts, in group exercise classes, or at the gym, but the property also consumes energy for many different things.

According to Åström, on a daily basis, Hukka’s consumption peaks fall between 4 p.m. and 8 p.m. due to the increase in the consumption of hot water, i.e., the use of the showers. The saunas are also very popular at Hukka, which increases energy consumption. In winter, heat consumption naturally increases, and in the summer, the energy consumption of lighting decreases, especially as ball players move to the outdoor courts.

Energy is a significant expense at Hukka due to the size of the properties. All possible savings amount to both an economic and an environmental responsibility for the company. During the energy crisis, Hukka drew up detailed preparedness and action plans. Fortunately, however, the situation did not become bad enough to need to use the plans or to have to close the popular sauna, for example. 

With the OE360 service, it is easy for Åström to monitor the results of the shared work on energy management at Hukka

Hukka closely monitors energy consumption and continuously carries out various energy renovations. Åström shares that for example, the old fluorescent lamps in the tennis courts were recently replaced with more energy-efficient LED lamps.

Thanks to the renovation, the number of lamps could be reduced from forty fluorescent lamps in each tennis court to twelve LED lamps, which significantly reduces total consumption. At the same time, the light output in the courts quadrupled. The large Kuntohukka also switched to more energy-efficient Greenled lamps during the previous summer. The energy renovations have been immediately visible in the consumption graphs on the OE360 service. 

Hukka has also involved its members in optimising energy use and smart energy consumption. For example, each court has individual light switches on the sidelines to avoid illuminating empty courts and wasting energy.

“Based on feedback from members, there is a high level of awareness of energy and water consumption. We also “market” various energy optimisation methods on our social media channels and through newsletters,” Åström states.