how to make the right choices for smart building integration
Interphone, a leading security systems and building technology integrator, has commissioned an industry white paper for property developers, managing agents and building managers. It is designed to raise awareness of latest developments and generate debate about how best to approach home automation and smart building integration now and in the future.
How to make the right choices for smart building integration
Internet of Things (IoT) thinking, where devices are connected over the internet and communicate with one another, is already becoming mainstream. Global IT research company Gartner has estimated that nearly 5 billion connected ‘things’ – including building security systems, domestic white goods and office equipment – were in use by the end of 2015, up 30 per cent from 2014, and that the total is expected to reach 25 billion by 2020.
From the concept of the ‘smart home’ (or ‘home automation’), already the subject of numerous newspaper and magazine features – via the emerging ‘smart office’ to the utopia of the ‘smart city’ – ‘things’ present in buildings are increasingly being designed and manufactured to work together with each other and with their users.
The gains on offer from such complex smart building arrays include increased efficiency, cost savings, comfort, convenience and security. But the essential requirements for securing the optimum benefits from this connected technology are careful advance planning, accurate specification and meticulous installation. This will ensure the effective integration from the outset of individual components equipped with the necessary inter-connectivity.
