Smart building value lies in the ability to tap into unprecedented amounts of data that empower real-time, intelligent decision making. Achieving this requires a robust and versatile communications infrastructure that can support both existing and future use cases.

But while the importance of smart building connectivity is evident, today’s bewildering variety of technology options often makes the wireless decision a challenging task for property owners. Worse, the intricate technology picture leaves plenty of room for misconceptions around the wireless architecture, specifically its design and functionality. In this week’s blog, we highlight three common myths that should be put to rest.

1. Smart Building Connectivity Is All About 5G and Wi-Fi 6

Since their introduction, 5G and Wi-Fi 6 have constantly hit the headlines across the tech world. Given the prevalence of cellular and Wi-Fi connectivity in both the built environment and our daily lives, smart buildings are unsurprisingly discussed as a key application area. All hype aside, it’s important to soberly assess what role these technologies have to play in the intelligent architecture. Certainly, 5G and Wi-Fi are essential for high-throughput, high-speed data transfer of growing digital amenities like building intranets, video conferencing, digital signages, and augmented/virtual reality services in commercial settings. However, human-to-human broadband communication is only part of the smart building story.

The drastic uptake of modular wireless sensors that deliver fine-grained visibility into virtually every aspect of facility operation is at the heart of the IoT for smart building revolution. Think of examples like environmental sensors, leak detectors or occupancy sensors. These devices primarily send small amounts of data periodically or when abnormal events arise, so high-bandwidth communication isn’t necessary. Instead, what matters much more is power-efficient, scalable and robust machine-to-machine connectivity that can support a constantly growing endpoint base that often numbers in the thousands, if not hundreds of thousands. Here, the newer Low Power Wide Area Networks (LPWAN) is quickly gaining a foothold.

Long story short, the diversity of smart building applications is vast and growing by the day. As such, both traditional broadband networks and emerging low-power IoT connectivity will need to co-exist in the wireless architecture to harness all this transformation has to offer.

2. Wireless IoT Will Replace Legacy Wired Building Systems

Almost every large, high-rise commercial buildings nowadays have one or multiple building automation systems (BAS) currently implemented. These systems are largely connected using wired protocols to control key building functions like HVAC, lighting, security, fire safety and elevators. As the IoT and the vision of limitless device interconnection come on the scene, many envisage that the new generation of IoT sensors and wireless connectivity will soon supersede the legacy cabling networks. Nevertheless, this isn’t that simple.

For decades, the physical wire infrastructure has been carefully installed and commissioned to provide the ultra-reliable backbone communication fundamental to automation and control of mission-critical BAS components. And, it isn’t likely to be ripped and replaced any time soon. Having said that, existing BAS operations are far from efficient. Due to the high cost and complexity of running cables, these systems only incorporate a handful of input devices, thus missing out on many critical parameters needed for optimal equipment regulation.

Wireless IoT is added to the smart building connectivity mix to exactly overcome this challenge. Rather than replacing the wired infrastructure, it overlays a new sensor communication network to collect granular in-building data like air quality and human presence – not previously possible. Integrating this information into legacy BAS enables responsive and distributed equipment control that takes into account dynamic building conditions and tenant behavior. This, in turn, brings new levels of efficiency, comfort and sustainability.

3. Home Automation Networks Are Easily Transferrable to Smart Building Deployment

Mesh protocols like Zigbee and Z-Wave have been widely implemented in personal or home area networks, typically for use cases like light and switch control. Their success in home automation has paved the way for their potential use in commercial buildings – with connected lighting being a flagship application. As IoT and smart building technology take off, many expect that wireless mesh networks will quickly extend their reach to incorporate numerous other connected use cases in the built environment. This bullish vision could likely be the reality, if it wasn’t for some important technical considerations that we need to factor in.

The mesh topology works perfectly in small-scale home settings where there are only a handful of connected devices. Nevertheless, in a smart building scenario, the building size and structure is more complex by orders of magnitude. Plus, there are a greater number of vastly distributed endpoints. To offset the short radio link, mesh devices must be evenly allocated close to each other and extra repeaters will most likely be required for seamless coverage. As most nodes are also responsible for passing along data of other devices, their power consumption can greatly increase, and any single point of failure threatens to impact network stability. In large-scale implementations, the setup and management overheads of mesh solutions can far exceed those of star topology networks like LPWAN.

The bandwidth challenge is another critical issue to look into. With most mesh protocols operating in the crowded 2.4 GHz band, their transmissions are subject to significant interference from legacy Wi-Fi and Bluetooth systems. Even if the network can survive the 2.4 GHz traffic for now, what happens if new sensors are constantly added over time? Amidst fast-evolving technology landscape and tenants’ needs, the scalability and futureproofing of smart building connectivity must be thought out from the get-go.

Takeaways

To sum it up, with so many technologies on offer, it’s often challenging for property owners to grasp what the communication architecture should look like. Besides the established backbone wired infrastructure and traditional enterprise wireless broadband communications, low-power wireless IoT is joining the smart building connectivity mix to target an entirely new host of high-value intelligent use cases.

LPWAN, in particular, delivers deep indoor penetration, easy implementation and ultra-low power consumption needed to scale with a new breed of low-computing and battery-operated IoT sensor devices. As opposed to intricate mesh networks with trees and sidearms, a robust LPWAN solution requires as few as a single base station to connect thousands of dispersed endpoints across the entire building – using the simple star topology. What’s more, LPWAN’s use of sub-GHz frequencies helps circumvent heavy interference from legacy building wireless systems in the 2.4 GHz band, to better ensure network reliability in the long run. At the end of the day, the wireless decision can make or break your smart building architecture.

Contemporary commercial buildings are undergoing a major transformation. Once simply seen as places to work and live, buildings are now becoming digitally connected spaces where human and technology converge and interact in previously unimaginable ways. The tidal wave of the Internet of Things (IoT) along with a new breed of technologies is paving the way to the smart building transformation. Smart buildings leverage cutting edge IoT innovations to collect data on virtually every aspect of building operation, converting them into business intelligence and unlocking transformational value for property owners, facility managers and building occupants alike.

As the first step towards intelligent, connected buildings, property owners and CRE companies must look beyond traditional civil engineering to architect a robust network and data infrastructure through digital engineering. With the smart building market ceaselessly evolving adapt to changing stakeholders’ needs and larger socio-economic movements, being able to respond to current and future market trends and requirements is a vital requirement. In this context, choosing the right wireless technology is paramount to seamlessly incorporate innovative IoT use cases and smart devices that emerge down the road.

For those looking to start down the smart building path, our latest white paper will help you prepare and position yourself to reap the enormous potential of the transformation ahead. This paper explores the many benefits of smart buildings for stakeholders and outlines the key building blocks of intelligent infrastructure, so you can better navigate the technology landscape and design your own architecture. Furthermore, it walks through ongoing industry trends and applications, including a real-world example of a global commercial real estate (CRE) company embarking on smart building initiatives to deliver enhanced value for its tenants.

Download the White Paper here

Smart buildings are at the cutting edge of commercial real estate innovations. Much of this revolution is predicated on unprecedented data influxes brought by the Internet of Things (IoT) that reveal fine-grained insights into previously unknown aspects of building operations. By marrying IoT data with existing building systems and other data sources, a smart building brings new levels of automation and command and control.

Having said that, IoT for smart buildings isn’t a pure technological concept. As much as a rock-solid digital foundation, forward-thinking property owners understand that they first need a well-articulated strategy and vision that act as the guiding light for their long-term smart building initiative. Knowing what the business cases are and where to harness the most value lays the groundwork for all technical implementation that follows.

For owners to better define and position their smart building strategy, in this blog, we identify five trends and applications that are dominating the market.

1. Tenants’ Wellbeing and A Safe Return to Work

Building management used to be almost synonymous with energy efficiency. Yet, with the emergence of modern building standards like WELL, there has been a renewed focus on tenant health and wellness in the built environment. Particularly in the wake of the COVID-19 quarantine, reassuring employees’ safety for a confident return to work is now more important than ever.

Constant monitoring of indoor climate conditions is crucial to maintain a comfortable, productive and personalized environment for occupants. As such, the ability to track diverse environmental variables – from temperature and relative humidity to air, lighting and sound quality – in real-time and with granularity is quickly gaining momentum. Concurrently, in the pandemic era, occupancy sensing is deemed to provide multi-purpose data for growing use cases like usage-based sanitation, traffic control and in-building navigation, to optimize hygiene and ensure safe physical distancing for visitors and tenants.

2. Agile Smart Workspace

Emerging work trends like activity-based working, remote work and co-working have taken the world by storm. And their prevalence only amplifies following the global health crisis. As businesses are embracing new ways of working and changing employees’ priorities, the modern workplace is poised to evolve.

IoT occupancy and traffic flow data allows firms and building owners to effectively gauge how different areas of the office space are being used. Armed with this information, they can make informed decisions on space layouts to maximize utilization while sparking innovation and collaboration. Specifically, organizations can better rightsize meeting rooms and configure the optimal mix between open, cooperative space and individual, focus zone – based on actual demand. Likewise, innovative models like hot desking or flex space can be introduced to increase space efficiency and fulfill the need for more fluid, agile work settings.

3. Smart Energy Management

The quest for higher energy efficiency in building operations shows no sign of slowing down, amidst rising utility costs and environmental challenges. As governments around the world continue to set ambitious energy conservation targets in an effort to reduce global carbon footprint, smart building technology promises to play a central role.

Many commercial buildings today succumb to significant energy waste caused by unnecessary HVAC and lighting activities. Using IoT data as a feedback loop, greater efficiency can be achieved with decentralized, on-demand equipment control that takes into account occupants’ behaviors and preferences, alongside real-time indoor conditions at discrete zones. Concurrently, wireless sub-metering systems offer granular insights into electric, water and gas consumption to uncover abnormal usage trends and determine waste sources.

4. Predictive Maintenance and Asset Digitization

According to the EU Community Research and Development Information Service (CORDIS), maintenance costs far exceed the construction costs of a building throughout its lifecycle. With that in mind, IoT for smart buildings can reduce maintenance costs by 3 to 9 times by empowering predictive maintenance in replacement of the traditional reactive approach.

Due to the challenge of siloed building automation systems, most facility operators today have little to no visibility into the current conditions of critical assets like air-conditioning units. In this context, next-gen wireless smart sensors can be easily retrofit inside or outside legacy equipment to gather various parameters on its operational status that were unattainable before. Having this data at hand, operators can effectively detect telltale signs of asset failures to schedule maintenance in advance.

For example, abnormal trends in temperature, noise, ammonia and other data points inside a walk-in cooler room indicate impending problems of the freezer, allowing corrective work orders to be timely executed before serious a breakdown happens.

5. Data-Driven Digital Services

The use of IoT data in smart buildings isn’t just limited to owners and facility managers. Beyond on-premises systems, relevant sensor data can be fed into a cloud-hosted platform and retrieved at a tenant experience app, offering exciting opportunities to maximize comfort and productivity with high-value digital services.

The app delivers a channel for tenants to better access to building conveniences and amenities. For example, they can easily find and navigate to available parking spots, receive occupancy updates on common spaces, reserve room and amenities on demand, or get instant notifications of facility issues like water leakage – all via a single user interface. Ultimately, these services play into a frictionless tenant experience to improve engagement and retention.

Final Thoughts

The magic of IoT for smart buildings is that it can be applied across all property classes – from office and retail to residential and campuses. The umbrella applications and value pillars are often repeatable across facilities, allowing CRE companies to maximize return-on-investment of their deployment. Being able to stay on top of major market trends that are happening, property owners can work out their own strategy to ride on the smart building wave.