Smart buildings are on a trajectory to change the way we live and work.
Real-time monitoring will drive decision making about building use as connected systems become more common. At the same time, related developments in smart technology will create superior facility management in terms of optimized energy and making the workplace more personalized for employers.
JLL’s Akshay Thakur, Regional Director of the Smart Buildings Program, talked smart buildings with Real Views, and offered the following key insights about the future development of smart buildings.
Key technologies smart buildings use now
Thakur said that new technology is hooking up different regions of buildings using either a single-cable data solution called Power over ethernet (PoE), or a host of wireless solutions like WiFi, Bluetooth, or short range radios.
More and more, building sub-systems are linking up to common networks to make easy monitoring and superior facility management possible through previously inaccessible data.
Another common adoption is a network of sensors that can be used to adjust temperature, or monitor occupancy. In the future, buildings could become so optimized that an individual could make environmental adjustments with a smartphone, or run with complete intuitive automation.
Smart buildings in the future
Smart buildings will suit human needs and enable business operations by eliminating the hassle of, say, wrestling with cables to set up a power point, by implementing a system in which laptops can be loaded into a room booking system so that they can be ready to go at a moment’s notice.
Meanwhile, the overall building performance will improve as data is used to determine the most energy efficient layouts and work locations for users. Beyond that, innovative energy solutions such as the Pavegen floor tiles that convert the kinetic energy of footsteps to electricity and solar cells will help make buildings more efficient.
This isn’t a hypothetical, The Edge building in Amsterdam generates more energy than it consumes through its solar panel system.