How did the project, and then the Energie IP company, come about? Energie IP is a tale of innovation, flexibility and passion! It all began during our experience collaborating with Bouygues Construction in 2013. We were testing an American PoE (Power Over Ethernet) system, designed to control office lighting in France. That project didn’t go the distance, but it allowed me to identify an opportunity for development by designing a solution that was smart, connected, integrated, secure, comprehensive and economic. This system is completely innovative, including in terms of its cabling method – using an Ethernet cable to feed and communicate with office equipment such as lighting, blinds and air conditioning. This turnkey solution (covering products, installation and launch) is aimed primarily at the tertiary real estate market (offices), which is an area I have significant experience in, having spent several years working in research and design offices. How did Bouygues Construction support the development of your project? Bouygues Construction was a key partner in the success of Energie IP. Our collaboration began during the first of the Group’s Open Innovation programs, “Matching-up”, in early 2016. We were supported by a tight-knit team (Isabelle Grillaud, R&D/Innovation Manager at Bouygues Bâtiment Ile-De-France – Private Construction, and the sponsor of our Matching-up start-up, Didier Audoin, Engineering Manager at Bouygues Batiment Ile-De-France – Private Construction and Julien Bourcerie, Innovation Acceleration manager in the Innovation and Sustainable Development division at Bouygues Construction), especially when pilot testing the solution in the offices of Studio Iena, the interior architecture firm used by Bouygues Bâtiment Ile-de-France in Paris since 2016. What will be the next steps in your growth? We went through a first round of fundraising in 2017 via Demeter, for a sum of a million euros. This operation enabled Energie IP to assemble a team, put our services on the market and invest in the commercial development of our solution among real estate developers and design offices. It’s now very important that we concentrate our efforts on the success of our first project in Saint-Ouen, which will act as the PoE showcase for Energie IP and Bouygues Construction. At the same time, because innovation never stands still and the PoE market is growing, we’ve also launched new development projects in order to supplement our service package.  For example, since our system runs entirely on direct current, potential interactions with sources of solar energy production are currently being studied. More to come…