The weekly market in the heart of Stuttgart has been an important part of the city culture over centuries and is a regular event where people of Stuttgart gather to buy locally grown ingredients and regional foods. The weekly market opens right before the sunrise and wakes up the bypassers, early work commuters, and dog walkers, with the scents of baked warm pastries, and freshly brewed coffee. From the market, you can find products from fresh and locally grown vegetables and fruits, to traditional German sausages and fresh pastries – it is a truly local culinary experience in the heart of Stuttgart.
Marketplace without a proper electrical infrastructure
The market has taken place at the beautiful market square of Marktplatz for over centuries, precisely since its founding 300 years ago, in 1715. Due to recently started construction work at the Marktplatz area, the weekly market had to be relocated. It was moved to Königstraße, a shopping boulevard that is one of the most important pedestrian zones of the city. Thousands of people walk across Königstraße every day with their families and children since it connects the main shopping routes in Stuttgart.
Königstraße works perfectly for the weekly market thanks to its great location and traffic, but it’s missing one important feature: proper electrical infrastructure. The current infrastructure at Königstraße is not equipped to provide the necessary electrical supply for the market stands, which creates unnecessary struggles in the daily operation of the stands. At the moment, all market stands at Königstraße are forced to use portable fossil fuel-powered generators, which cause noise and air pollution, not only right at the market but also in the nearby area. The use of inefficient, fuel-powered generators in comparison to the actual energy demand for the stands is highly disproportional and goes against the ecofriendly values and efforts of the city.
Sustainable and hassle-free electricity solution
Noticing this problem and hearing the frustration from market stand keepers, we provided them with our instagrid portable power system. Most of the market stands need electricity to power three different appliances throughout the day: lights, freezer, and cashier. The instagrid portable power system powered all the equipment for the whole day at the market stand, and the feedback from the sellers was highly positive. “Using instagrid system brought a whole new level of calmness to us and to our customers”, says Mr. Ziegler. Market environments tend to be very hectic and busy places not only for the market sellers but also for the visiting customers. instagrid portable power system removes the unnecessary noise and emissions caused by fossil fuel-powered generators and eliminates the hassle with long cables. “I would definitely use instagrid system in other similar environments as well – for example, the Christmas market”, says Mr. Ziegler.
“Using instagrid portable power system brought a whole new level of calmness to our day.” – Mr. Ziegler
Compared to the previous solution, fuel-powered generator, instagrid portable power system does not have any local emissions and is completely silent. As instagrid solution also has an IP54+ rating, the market stand sellers can place the system wherever they are at, without worrying about the daily weather conditions. Mr. Ziegler pointed out, that they have wanted to switch their fuel-powered generators to battery versions for a while already but had not found a solution that would work in rainy weather before instagrid.
“I would definitely use instagrid system in other similar environments as well – for example the Christmas market.” – Mr. Ziegler
Demand for a sustainable and power supply
At the end of the day, we were able to provide a whole new sustainable market experience and in addition provide peace of mind for the sellers, as well as the visitors. With instagrid portable power system, the market sellers and customers don’t even notice the electricity, whereas before they would have been distracted by the generator noise and emissions. The feedback from the market sellers has proven that the demand for a sustainable and more effective power supply is vital not only for the market seller’s business but in general for improving urban infrastructures towards a more sustainable future.
Replacing fuel-powered generators as an electricity source also supports the eco-friendly values and efforts of Stuttgart city. To support these efforts, the city of Stuttgart has already set in motion and continues to work on existing or new concepts and projects – such as the Climate Protection Concept (KLIKS) or the Climate Change Adaptation Concept (KLIMAKS), electrical busses, and air filtering systems.