Brunata-Metrona
| Brunata-Metrona
|
|
|---|---|
 |
|
| legal form | Partnership |
| founding | Hamburg: 1954 Hürth: 1952 Munich: 1949 |
| Seat | Hamburg , Huerth , Munich |
| management | Brunata Hamburg:
Brunata Huerth:
Brunata Munich:
|
| Number of employees | approx. 1,800 |
| Branch | Billing service provider |
| Website | www.brunata-metrona.de |
The Brunata-Metrona Group ( own spelling BRUNATA-METRONA ) is a service provider for consumption -dependent heating and water billing . Brunata-Metrona produces and installs devices and systems for exact consumption recording. Several million households in Germany are looked after with heat cost allocators , heat meters and water meters in accordance with the heating cost ordinance.
The three parent companies in Hamburg , Hürth and Munich are legally and economically independent partners of the group of companies. There are 1200 employees and 1900 service technicians in over 40 branches and more than 60 service centers across Germany.
The biggest competitors are Techem GmbH , Minol Messtechnik W. Lehmann and ista Deutschland GmbH .
Business areas
Heating billing
Services (billing service) and measuring devices for recording and billing energy (heat and / or cold) and water, as well as consumption analyzes and energy monitoring.
Equipment distribution
Sales of heat cost allocators, heat, cold and hybrid meters, hot water and cold water meters, meter accessories and smoke alarms. The forms of distribution are the sale with possible maintenance and the rental of the devices.
Data exchange and integrated billing service INTAS
The data exchange enables a rational heating cost billing and significantly reduces the administrative effort for the owner or manager. Processing times are shortened. Transmission errors are almost impossible. The integrated billing service INTAS combines the utility bill and the heating bill in one billing document. All relevant data is automatically available in the management system after the two accounts have been linked.
Energy contracting
Supporting customers with optimal technical infrastructures and services in order to make buildings, systems and core processes more efficient while also relieving energy resources. Availability and quality are systematically increased, operational readiness is reliably ensured, and flexibility is increased. The business area is operated in cooperation with Cofely Deutschland GmbH (formerly Axima Deutschland GmbH).
Smoke alarm service
The use of smoke alarm devices in accordance with DIN 14676 is used to warn people of fire smoke and fires at an early stage so that they can react appropriately to the hazardous event. Due to the reduced perception of fire smoke during sleep, children's rooms, sleeping areas and corridors in particular must be monitored by smoke alarm devices. On the products purchased from leading European manufacturers of smoke alarm devices, Brunata-Metrona guarantees, due to the high quality level of these devices, that no false alarms will occur if they are used as intended and in accordance with the guidelines. A real alarm guarantee and a 10-year device guarantee for smoke alarm devices are issued for this purpose.
Drinking water analysis
A new drinking water ordinance has been in force nationwide since November 1st, 2011 . It stipulates that owners, landlords, owner associations or housing associations must have their large central systems for hot water preparation checked for legionella infestation annually . Brunata-Metrona offers the Legionella test according to § 14 of the Drinking Water Ordinance. The test is carried out in cooperation with accredited laboratories.
Ownership
The Hamburg and Munich houses have been family-owned since they were founded. Only the Hürth house is 100% owned by GEW Köln AG .
There is a close connection to the company Lorenz GmbH & Co. KG. The Lorenz company was founded in 1963 and is located in Schelklingen - Ingstetten. Lorenz has been developing, manufacturing, assembling and testing water meters and related accessories for over 40 years.
history
For historical reasons, there are four independent, stand-alone Brunata companies in Germany: The Brunata-Metrona-Houses in Hamburg, Cologne and Munich and Minol-Brunata in Stuttgart. The company Minol Messtechnik W. Lehmann GmbH & Co. KG no longer belongs to the current Brunata-Metrona group. Due to the independent licensing in the 1950s, the Minol company at its headquarters in Stuttgart also bears the name Brunata. Nationwide, however, this company appears as Minol. The Brunata-Metrona-Gruppe bears the name Metrona for this in the Stuttgart area. The personally liable partner of Minol Messtechnik W. Lehmann GmbH & Co. KG is Brunata Wärmemesser GmbH.
Innovations / miscellaneous
In 1993, Brunata introduced the Metrona radio system (433 MHz technology), a system for recording and reading heat and water without having to enter the apartment. In 2004 Brunata launched a radio system with the frequency 868 MHz.
Brunata Hamburg was the first measurement service company to deal with the subject of smoke alarms . The Brunata Metrona Group is also a member of the nationwide campaign "Smoke alarms save lives" in the fire smoke prevention forum in the Association for the Promotion of German Fire Protection
Memberships
- Working group heating and water cost distribution eV
- EVVE - European Association for Consumption-Based Energy Cost Accounting - eV (The Association for Energy Cost Allocation)
Antitrust aspects of the submetering business
In May 2017, the Federal Cartel Office published a "sector investigation into reading services for heating and water costs" with the result that there are considerable indications of the existence of an uncompetitive oligopoly in the market for reading services for heating and water costs , to which at least the two market leaders Techem and Ista International exist , but possibly also Minol Messtechnik W. Lehmann , Kalorimeta and Brunata-Metrona belong. A few large companies dominate the market for meter reading services for heating and water costs (the two largest providers Techem and Ista together have a 50% market share, the five largest providers together have 70%).
According to the Federal Cartel Office, the existing market structure and competition lead to "restrictions on actual and potential competition. The possibility of the opposite side of the market to switch to other companies is [...] limited." In total, the Federal Cartel Office found "relatively high" returns for the submetering companies, which result from an average turnover per residential unit and year of around EUR 74 (with clear differences between the various providers).
Criticisms of the Federal Cartel Office
The Federal Cartel Office expressed the main points of criticism both at structural features and at certain behaviors of the submetering providers who aim to "make it more difficult for customers to switch providers and are therefore suitable for limiting competition between submetering providers".
- Long contract terms , including different calibration periods for different types of meters.
- The cost of reading is usually borne by the tenant, the choice and commissioning of the reading service is made by the landlord ("triangular contract"). As a result, the client's price sensitivity is only weak.
- The costs of the reading are sometimes difficult or impossible to understand for the user, as they are only shown in aggregated form in the ancillary cost statements.
- A change of provider is made difficult by the lack of interoperability of meter systems. Due to legislative interventions, however, there is a trend towards more interoperable systems that could make it easier to switch providers in the future.
- A poor comparability of prices and the quality of the services offered makes it difficult to select alternative service providers.
- Tacit coordination : In particular, the leading companies Techem and ista have it comparatively easy, due to their position in the market, to reach agreement on the terms of tacit coordination. Among other things, the high degree of concentration, the high stability of demand and the divergence between direct demand and payment flows (triangular contractual relationship) allow uncontrollable room for maneuver, since central competitive parameters such as price setting and changing providers cannot develop their disciplinary effect on the submetering markets to a sufficient extent.
- Refusals to deliver accessories and spare parts : In the investigation by the Federal Cartel Office, 46 market participants surveyed stated that in certain cases they had difficulties when a submetering customer wanted to switch from their current provider. These difficulties often consisted of the availability of spare parts for taken over meters.
- Use of proprietary software and access to interfaces : Submetering providers usually do not grant their competitors access to the interface of their meters.
Recommendations of the Federal Cartel Office
The Bundeskartellamt recommends the following "measures to stimulate competition in reading services":
- promoting the interoperability of meters (approaches for this are already laid out in the MsbG ).
- a standardization of the calibration periods and usage periods of the meters so that a submetering customer can switch to another provider as easily as possible after a certain contract period.
- Softening the "triangular contractual relationship" (submetering company, submetering customer, user) in order to impose the costs of submetering on the party hiring the submetering company. In addition, improved transparency for tenants through information rights and tendering obligations.
Individual evidence
- ^ Lorenz GmbH & Co. KG
- ↑ a b c d Press release: Sector inquiry into meter reading services for heating and water costs. (PDF) Bundeskartellamt, May 4, 2017, accessed on January 4, 2018 .
- ↑ a b c d Sector Inquiry into Submetering - Presentation and analysis of the competitive situation in meter reading services for heating and water costs. (PDF) Bundeskartellamt, May 4, 2017, accessed on February 23, 2020 .
- ↑ Stefan Buchen: Kartell: How reading services enrich tenants. Norddeutscher Rundfunk - public law institution, July 10, 2019, accessed on February 23, 2020 .