Rise of the smart workplace
There is no denying that buildings are getting smarter. As IoT has affected our domestic lives, commercial real estate managers are now adopting a connected strategy to save money and make buildings more pleasant and productive workspaces, plus making them more cost-efficient and profitable.
According to a recent report from Zion Market Research, the global smart building market was valued at around $5,800 million in the year 2016 and it is expected to reach approximately $61,900 million by 2024. The global smart building market is expected to have a compound growth of more than 34% between 2017 and 2024.
This huge investment in building management systems, intelligent lighting, software, security and automation means that facilities managers, building owners and architects are under more pressure than ever to deliver the right solution to make their buildings more efficient and user friendly than ever before.
Next generation
As an example of this, a recent survey from Condeco has shown that the millennial generation, born between 1983 and 2000, are shaping the workplace to meet their needs. That means a space that is more open-plan, with fewer barriers between desks and multidisciplinary teams working together in ‘pods’.
“This report demonstrates how the modern workplace is changing,” said Peter Otto, product strategy and design director at Condeco. “Flexibility and remote working are increasingly important to today’s workers. The companies that are prepared for those workers will be able to attract the most talented candidates, both from the UK and internationally.”
“To remain effective, modern companies must ensure that they commit to providing a variety of spaces to help their teams communicate and collaborate, along with a fast and efficient way to find and reserve space, at any time, on any device,” concluded Peter.
This need to provide flexible, productive workspaces means that the use of technologies such as KNX and Bluetooth Mesh are now becoming much more common in the workspace. “More and more specifiers know that they have to install up to date connectivity and building management systems into their commercial buildings in order to maximise worker experience and profitability,” commented John Hatcher, conference director at Smart Buildings Show. “There is a thirst for knowledge for all areas of the smart commercial building, and our free conference and exhibition aims to provide visitors with the information to make an informed decision.”
To back this up an Intel-sponsored study by Juniper Research revealed that the rise in demand for flexible workspaces, the emergence of a more dynamic workforce, and an increasing focus on employee performance and wellbeing will dominate global CRE strategies in 2018. The adoption of smart real estate technologies and digitisation of buildings will also continue to transform the industry and shape the future of work.
Tom Carroll, head of corporate research, EMEA, JLL, said: “Real estate is an engine for innovation and growth. As the workforce becomes more flexible and dynamic, organisations are building more agile environments to embrace this transformation. We expect more businesses to ‘humanise’ their workplace through digitisation and smart technologies, using employee satisfaction, performance and wellbeing as the new way to measure success.”
An example of how technology is making buildings more usable and intelligent is Honeywell’s Vector Space Sense. It is a software solution that shows where, when and how building spaces are used at any given point in time. As a result, the building operations team can make better-informed real estate and space usage decisions.
On show in November
This type of solution is one of many that will on display at Smart Buildings Show, which is being held at The Barbican, London on the 7-8 November. The recently announced conference programme includes keynote addresses and presentations from some of the biggest names in the smart buildings industry including Bluetooth SIG, BSRIA, Capita, Engie, Honeywell Building Solutions, Hurley Palmer Flatt, IBM, ISS UK, JLL, KNX UK, Microsoft, Schneider Electric and Spica.
“The smart buildings industry is growing rapidly,” commented John Hatcher, “and the show will arm building service managers with the information that they need to make their building fit for purpose for the years ahead.”
To gain free registration for Smart Buildings Show 2018, please visit the link below.
