Novamondo
Neukölln district heating plant
2022—heute
Brand strategy
Brand design
Storytelling
UX-/UI-Design
Animation
Signage
Social Media
Various analogue and digital communication measures
FHW produces district heating for Neukölln and Kreuzberg in an area as small as Pariser Platz in front of the Brandenburg Gate – and has been doing so for more than 100 years. The plant has seen a lot in its history, but none of it has been as disruptive as the energy transition. As if the 75 million euro remodelling during ongoing operations wasn’t challenging enough, FHW Neukölln has been confronted with rising prices and insecure customers since the war in Ukraine.
In these turbulent times, we worked with FHW Neukölln to find new ways of communication and transparency – we developed a brand strategy and a new corporate design and completely redesigned the website.
The challenge
Just like the plant itself in the course of its transformation, we also had to find completely new ways of communicating with FHW. The complex topic of district heating and FHW’s specific product, which is produced using various fuels and processes, presented us with additional challenges: How can we present its function, benefits and sustainability in a clear and understandable way? And last but not least: How can the identity of a brand be identified if the future can only be described on the basis of a potential transformation path, which has had to be completely rethought since the start of the war in Ukraine at the latest?
Approach
We identified the core elements of the new brand identity in interviews and workshops. On this basis, we developed a value-orientated brand strategy that focuses on the district heating plant and its connection to the people in the district. ‘Kiezwärme’ became a central concept here, which we subsequently explained via further communication, especially via the new website.
The logo we developed gets to the heart of the new strategy, quite literally: it draws on the existing logo and tradition by utilising and further developing the arrow shape of the previous logo. The clear, dynamic arrow points forwards towards the future and symbolises FHW Neukölln’s commitment to pioneering technologies. It also points in the direction of the circle, which is symbolically placed above and stands for the local location in Neukölln – as well as for the community and humanity.
The new website with its clear design presents FHW and its Kiezwärme in detail – and also takes a technical step towards sustainability: FHW is the first company in the energy sector to also operate its website in energy-saving night mode..
Feedback from our customer:
‘A small traditional company wanted a completely new brand identity. Not an easy task! Novamondo supported and guided us from strategic brand development to the operational implementation of communication measures – in a structured, creative and fun way. We are very happy with what we have achieved together.’
(Barbara Meifert, FHW project manager)