Tomorrow
won’t wait

Buildings are at the centre of the energy transition. What does that mean for Hager?

Buildings account for 38% of global CO₂ emissions, and 75% of that comes from how they operate, not how they’re built. At the same time, 90% of today’s buildings will still be standing in 2050. Most of them are far from efficient. That’s why renovation is such a critical focus for us. Meanwhile, new buildings need to be designed for a completely different energy landscape. We address both – from the switchboard outward – with electrification solutions, energy management, EV charging, and storage.

Which solutions will have the greatest impact?

The most visible one is EV charging. People see it, they interact with it. But the most impactful will be energy management software and services. Managing how energy flows inside a building, optimising consumption, integrating solar, storage, and vehicles into one intelligent system – that’s what makes the real difference. We’ve been talking about smart homes for twenty years, but that was mostly about comfort: lights, blinds, convenience. What’s coming now is different. It’s about ensuring energy continuity, minimising costs, and making sure your car is charged when you need it, without giving it a thought.

How far along is this shift to buildings as active energy participants?

We’re in the transition phase. Buildings used to only consume energy. Tomorrow, they will produce, store, and optimise it as part of a larger ecosystem. We call it a microgrid – and with it we’re moving from centralised to decentralised, from continuous to intermittent sources, and from surplus to scarcity. You cannot solve that equation without thinking at system level.

Bidirectional charging connects buildings and vehicles. How close is that reality?

We’ve been co-developing V2X solutions with major European automotive players for three years. Vehicle-to-Home, Vehicle-to-Grid: the technology is ready, and we’re preparing market launch. The timing depends on standard alignment across the automotive and energy sectors. But consider this: the battery in a car holds significant capacity. If you can orchestrate thousands of those batteries centrally, you gain resilience. You avoid blackouts. You balance the grid. That’s the potential.

The switchboard sits at the heart of this. What does innovation look like there?

The switchboard is the interface between the grid and everything inside the building. Safety remains our first priority. That never stops. But the key innovation ahead is making every switchboard smart: embedding a brain that manages loads, optimises resources, and communicates with the wider system. We own that critical junction point. That’s where our expertise matters most.

Hager invests in long-term scenario planning. Why does that matter now?

Because the future won’t wait. Every year, my team analyses macro trends, such as technology, regulation, competition, or geopolitics. We’ve developed four disruptive scenarios the company could face within the next decade: accelerated geopolitical fragmentation, climate tipping points, AI disruption, and radical technology shifts. These not only help us to challenge our assumptions, but also to prepare operations, partnerships and our innovation pipeline. Two weeks after we defined one scenario, reality caught up. That’s why this work matters: it connects long-term thinking to short-term action.

What makes Hager well-positioned for this transformation?

We sit at the electrical backbone of the building. That gives us a unique position to integrate intelligence where it matters most. We combine 70 years of electrical expertise with a growing capability in intelligent solutions and services. And we think in ecosystems – buildings, vehicles, grids, people. Our role is to bring those worlds together: safe, smart, and seamless.