Where we work, can significantly affect how we work, so does a smart building help us work smarter? While that may still be up for debate, what we can say with confidence is that a smart building can lead you a long way in reducing overhead costs, getting one step closer to environmental consciousness and improving overall efficiency. How do we make these claims? It's simple.
Let's start by answering the most fundamental of questions, why does a building need to be smart? While a roof over your heads and a space to work or stay is sufficient, in a connected world, smart is the prerogative that helps you stay ahead. It's much like owning a smart watch, while all you need is a device that lets you know the time, fundamental value that is added in terms of access to emails, fitness, GPS, music control and all the other features allow you to feel inclusive in the connected world as we know it.
Time is another critical factor. Diagnostics, proactive actions and updates need to happen immediately, and having to pull your building apart to find the leaky faucet may prove time consuming and cost effective. A smart building can help stay one step ahead. While these may be some of the top level benefits of a smart building, at a deeper level. The digital ecosystem consists of millions of devices constantly monitoring your building and using advanced sensors to relay building related data to experts who take actions. At an operational level, every electronic item and every wearable within the building is turns into an abetting mechanism that transforms the building into a smart one. Switches, lamps, laptops and gates are all controlled via the Internet, in some cases remotely.
A smart building is able to understand climatic changes and adapt air conditioning and lighting to suit the need of the hour. This not only saves costs, but gives you that special badge for caring about the environment. So when you're evaluating if your building is a smart one or not, here are some pointers you could keep in mind to know the reality.
- A Smart Facade - Real-time and historical occupancy data, as well as information about traffic and weather patterns to shelter from extreme conditions.
- Smart Air Quality Management - Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems equipped with sensors and connected to an intelligent building management system for energy savings and improved indoor air quality.
- Mobility and Personalization – Making easy for the tenants and owners to interact with the equipment in the building.
- Comfort and Productivity - Creating a more comfortable and productive environment by measuring and managing the building’s temperature and lighting levels throughout the building.
- Failure Detection – Detection of error in a wireless sensor for sending alert signals to provide a robust and reliable system.
At HARMAN, we have helped businesses stay ahead in a connected world and transforming buildings in smart buildings falls under our array of expertise in the Internet of Things technology. Recently, helped create a managed IoT solution for Building management allowing the customer to opportunity to explore more options in intelligence, security, modularity, and intuitive interfaces. You can read more about it here.
So it's time to start thinking beyond opening your garage with your mobile device, the time to turn truly smart was yesterday, but HARMAN can help you get there.
