Anyone who manages or owns a building has likely heard the term smart building technology. If you haven't, you may conjure images of sentient appliances doubling as futuristic butlers. But, while droid-like helpers are a nice thought, smart building systems provide incalculable value for anyone looking to improve energy efficiency, indoor air quality, and lowering utility costs.
What Is Smart Building Technology?
Smart building tools don't fit into one simplified definition. The definition evolves constantly, and smart building technology examples include many facets, each serving a unique function.
However, although each solution plays a different part, they all serve one purpose: to make your building more energy efficient and safer through data-driven analytics and automation. Systems comprise software and hardware features. Together, they interlink, allowing your facility to communicate its needs in real time.
That's right, with smart tech, you can ask a building, "what's wrong?" and it will talk back. Smart device infrastructure alerts you to issues before you even have a chance to ask. However, communicating with a smart building must be an ongoing conversation for the best results.
Below, we'll look at each facet of smart building solutions. We'll explain how each part is necessary to reduce energy costs and increase infrastructure safety, security, and comfort.
Why Make Your Building Smarter?
If you enjoy paying higher utilities, breathing filthier air, and doing extra work, then smart building technology may not be right for you. However, if that's not you, you may appreciate learning more.
There's a long list of reasons to make your buildings smarter, but many businesses flock to smart tech because they find real savings and added value.
Still, while enormous savings come with adopting smart building technology, at the heart of investments are better, more productive environments for humans, whether it's increased indoor air quality or more sustainable infrastructure. Ultimately, human benefits are why smart buildings have become so popular.
Building owners form healthier environments by identifying and monitoring critical metrics. Smart tech accomplishes this through cutting-edge AI and automated analytics. These methods are the waves of the future, and building owners understand this. It's why estimates expect 115 million smart buildings by 2026.
If you're interested in the finer details of smart building technology, keep reading. Next, we'll dive into each major component of smart building technology.
Elements of Smart Technology for Buildings
Smart technology options are expanding and diversifying every year. However, overall, smart tech can be divided into four categories. Building managers must understand the importance of each one so they can customize and invest in the best solutions.
Air Quality Monitoring
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) estimates that 30% of all buildings have poor air quality. It's a stat that should make you wonder about the building you're in right now.
Maintaining good air quality doesn't mean avoiding unwelcome odors; it means preventing negative health impacts. Excess moisture or harmful particulates in buildings may cause severe health problems if occupants are exposed over time.
The main reason so many buildings struggle to secure breathable environments is a need for systems that record air quality measurements. Developers of smart building technology recognize this, and it's why air quality monitoring is a crucial element of any system.
Top air quality monitoring systems provide a wide range of insights. These systems comprise a series of sensors placed in strategic spaces throughout the building. Every second, they analyze air quality, measuring for things like CO2, humidity, or dangerous, volatile organic compounds.
With constant indoor air pollution monitoring, building managers can view key indicators through easy-to-read dashboards and data reports. In addition, they can share reports with occupants, guaranteeing that their workplace or residence is safe to inhabit.
IoT Sensors
Every smart building needs a robust sensor grid to record critical insights. As stated above, these sensors monitor indoor air quality, but they also apply to any utility. Whether it's plumbing, lighting, heating, or air, IoT sensors act as the brain of the operation, collecting key data points at every moment of the day.
These sensors feed information into the software system. Building managers can gain valuable insights through this information, helping inform decisions that reduce energy consumption and create healthier environments.
IoT sensors offer information to lower operational costs and even give overseers tips for preventative maintenance. For example, if a water pipe is leaking or a valve is about to burst, it will send an alert. With these alerts, building managers can handle issues before they occur.
Smart Building Controls
Ever wish you could put your building on autopilot? With smart building controls, you can.
Smart building controls work with every critical system within a building. Whether a smart thermostat for controlling heating/cooling from afar, or automated, zonal-based lighting, smart controls let managers harness the power of modern tech to improve each aspect of their building's environment.
However, the most valuable part isn't auto-pilot. With the large and continuous amounts of data collected, managers can let smart controls optimize themselves. Ultimately, such sensor networks allow your building to grow along with you. The more information that's collected, the more you save over time.
Building Operation Analytics
Insight is necessary for positive development. However, compiling data to create legible insights takes a lot of work.
Smart building technology recognizes the need for easy-to-understand, informative analytics. Therefore, the best smart building setups provide managers with charts, data sets, and recommendations based on collected data.
Analytics help managers make crucial decisions regarding maintenance, safety, and expenses. Smart building tech is the only way to put data to work. Then, you can use the reclaimed time to focus on more important concerns.
Learn About Our Smart Building IoT Solutions
If you want the best available IoT solutions, consider Attune's wide range of products. They provide a completely customizable IoT platform. Managers can select the exact sensor setup, then access data through a sleek, accessible dashboard.
The results are staggering. Find out how Attune can help you begin saving money and create a healthier, more sustainable environment immediately after installation. Schedule a demo, or visit our blog to learn more about the extraordinary power of smart building technology.