15 Smart Building Facts: Highlights from the InfoComm100

• November 15, 2012
• Steve Greenblatt

Attending the InfoComm 100 in Reston, Virginia, got me thinking about new solutions and creative approaches for collaborative support among AV colleagues, particularly in the world of energy management.  I shared many of these thoughts in my day-after report for Commercial Integrator and I am ready to add some more insight to keep this conversation moving among friends and colleagues in the industry.

The biggest takeaway from the InfoComm100 was the role of smart building technology and the opportunities that creates for AV business longevity and profitability.  Designers and integrators, consultants and programmers, are poised to embrace smart building technology as an innovative, creative and profitable line of business.

In the spirit of Control Concepts celebrating 15 Years in the AV business, here is my list of 15 Smart Facts for AV Professionals.

Smart Building Means New Opportunity for AV Profitability

• Smart Building technology is an AV-IT union that keeps AV professionals in key roles
• Smart Buildings mean a shift in focus from ROI to user/client needs
• Smart is not about conventional AV but AV optimizes the efficiency and capabilities of smart buildings

See Smart, Work Smart

• Think Dashboards: easy to read and easy to interpret dashboards make technology accessible and workable for users across skill levels
• Smart is about data management: You Can’t Manage What You Don’t Measure
• More sensors mean smarter monitoring

Technology Teaches: Monitor, Measure, Master

• Smart buildings are like smartphones: leverage the technology and user friendly features
• Smart buildings are ready to work for you with the right software design and utilization
• Apps leverage the capabilities of a building just like they do for the phone in your pocket
• Smart monitoring motivates and manages smart behavior
• Smart management means cost savings and efficiency improvements

Work Smart

• Smart means responding to and serving customers needs efficiently
• Working smarter comes from leveraging data that is already being collected and presenting results
• Smart means knowing what customers need before they ask for it

Become smarter by maximizing mobile devices for their sensors capabilities