Smart Buildings Systems for Architects, Owners and Builders

n There is a lack of cable pathways in existing buildings, resulting in greater
use of wireless devices.

n There are life safety issues related to abandoned cables because the older
cable may have a sheath that could contribute to the generation of fire
and smoke during a fire. In the United States the National Electrical Code
requires unused cable to be removed during renovations. This can increase
project time and costs.

n There may be organizational issues involved with facility management,
security, and IT that have been established as separate departments and
may be less likely to cooperate with an integrated approach.

Despite the challenges the financial metrics of improving the performance
of a building and adding appropriate technology amenities can be compelling.
The investment in an existing building is returned in several ways: lower
operating and energy costs, more cost effective tenant improvements, premium
rents, higher asset valuation, and a positive effect on capital planning.

Deployment

While many building owners find the concept of upgrading the performance of
existing buildings persuasive and intuitive they struggle with moving from a
concept to actual deployment. The sections that follow describe a strategy to
successfully improve the performance of existing buildings.

Go through a Discovery Process

Generally the information available on the system’s performance in existing
buildings is sparse. For example, if the building is using a typical BAS terminal
from one of the major manufacturers the system is likely providing more raw
data than useable, actionable information. Despite the meager amount of data,
one has to pull together as much information as possible and analyze it to gain
insight into the building’s performance and to identify trends, pain points, and
opportunities. One needs to gather information about:

n What the capabilities and features of the existing systems are

n What similar properties have done

n What the energy usage and costs for the building are

n What has generated most of the building maintenance work orders

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