Page 56 - RC21 EDGE Summer Issue

be product launches and M&A activity in this category. For example, phone-based apps can now support a daily health check for any employee that wants to work from the office. The same kinds of products are being used by schools and preschools, too. Moreover, the requirements of a flexible office mean that use cases such as finding a room to work in for the day or monitoring and controlling your indoor environment make sense on a phone. Beyond the occupant, there are a whole range of building stakeholders that could benefit from more data on a mobile device: operators can benefit from alerts and sensor readings that may identify high-priority maintenance issues. Some multifamily buildings provide self-guided tours of apartments. This also makes sense in office and commercial space. You will be able to interact with your building from your phone. The use cases will expand. The experience will improve. And the benefits will continue to accrue.
Continued merging of traditional FM
and energy/IOT/health data
Historically, these were viewed as separate software categories, with separate vendor landscapes and procurement processes. Now they are merging. As noted above, an increased focus on building performance will require facility management software to integrate with energy management and sensors to monitor the indoor air. Currently, these data sources may be housed in separate solutions. But vendors are making moves to deliver a more integrated data offering, a trend which has accelerated in the past year. Just in the final weeks of 2020, SkyFoundry launched a work order management solution, Dexma (energy management) was acquired by Spacewell (indoor space management) and SPIE and Energisme partnered to integrate energy data sources into facility management services. These are not the only examples of this consolidation, just the recent ones.
The benefits, more visibility of these data sets across more stakeholders in the buildings, are clear. We believe that more and more value will be identified by bringing together siloed data sources, so this is a trend that will continue and perhaps even accelerate. Other research firms also have highlighted some of these trends in great detail, too. In short, purchasing decisions for the smart office are becoming more important.
Job training and tech augmentation
Our industry is in need of an infusion of talent, with IFMA identifying a “critical talent shortfall” as far back as 2017. There are many people out of work, some in industries that may not come back. Moreover, there are serious discussions of a big infrastructure bill. We’ve argued that a “smart building stimulus” would be a compelling way to drive energy reductions and put people to work. This year,
we believe that such discussions will continue, at the very least. The recipe for success appears to be assistance
to help workers upskill, with a focus on data driven technologies that can drive operational efficiency and energy management (in addition to sensor technologies that raise awareness of ventilation and air filtration, for example). Credit Suisse also has been covering this, especially in Europe (which is already actively pursuing
its Renovation Wave strategy). Credit Suisse highlights the value of investing in buildings and the significant multiplier effect on jobs: International Energy Agency data indicates that every $1M spent on building retrofits will create 15 jobs—higher job creation than other spending.
Technology’s role in the repositioning of assets
A sea change in how we use real estate is happening now, with offices becoming schools or life sciences research space. There’s also growing demand for warehouses, which may be coming to a suburban mall near you. It will be important for landlords to have better data on their assets, and more flexibility to adapt those buildings.
Moreover, what happens if offices in 2023 look more like offices in 2019? By that point (or around that time), one argument is that many companies will see the pros and cons of office space and may also see more demand from employees to congregate together. It’s a feasible outcome even if it isn’t the most likely. Given the uncertainty, making significant investments to repurpose an asset likely will require good data to justify the capital expenditures. As
an analog, a key theme of smart cities deployments is collecting data for better visibility on city services, to be more responsive to citizens. NYC converted old phone booths into hotspots, which also provide data on how many people are in different places at different times. The same could be said for commercial property. Data can
be used to understand current usage patterns, and then inform how the space can be employed in the future. If we assume change is the norm, and adaptability is required, then more data may be the differentiator.
We’re excited to see how the year plays out. Specifically, we believe that smart building technology is moving from new and emergent to must-have and widely adopted.
Joseph Aamidor is an experienced product leader and expert in smart buildings, real estate technology and facility operations. He provides product and market strategy guidance to building owners/operators,
established building management firms, technology providers, investors, and early-stage innovators. Previously, he served as Director of Product at Lucid Design
Group and was a product manager at Johnson Controls.
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