Imagine stepping into a building where the temperature feels like it was custom-made for you—not based on a generic standard, but perfectly aligned with your preferences, activity level, and even how you're feeling that day....
Smart Buildings
How connected buildings deliver comfort and savings: data flows, alarms, dashboards and the people/process side of “smart”.
Disaster Resilience Series Part 1: Real-Time Monitoring
The Role of Building Automation in Disaster Resilience (1/3) The frequency and intensity of natural disasters are only increasing. As facility managers, owners, and engineers, it's no longer a question of if disaster will...
Part 3: Integrated Communication Systems: Streamlined Emergency Alerts and Instructions
Series: The Role of Building Automation in Disaster Resilience (3/3) In the previous articles, we covered real-time data monitoring and emergency lighting. Now, we’ll dive into Integrated Communication Systems, an...
The Metaverse, Digital Twins, and Building Decarbonization
After the former-company-known-as-Facebook rebranded itself in late 2021 to Meta, much of the world discovered the “metaverse”—the next generation of human connectivity that would fundamentally transform how we socialize and work. According to Zuckerberg’s...
Open Building Systems are a Hedge Against Future Uncertainty
The social, environmental and technological challenges for the commercial real estate sector are significant. Many building owners and managers are still adjusting to the disruptions of the COVID pandemic, lock downs, remote working, mask mandates, rising energy costs...
3 Ways Your HVAC System Impacts Fire Protection
Fire protection systems are one of the most complex and ubiquitous structures within facilities today. They contain many parts intertwined with other building components. For example, emergency lighting and smoke detectors wire into your electrical system. Fire pumps...
4 Common Types of Touch Screens and How They Work
Touch screens are ubiquitous. We use them at the grocery store to check out, and at the airport to check in. They’re at visitor center kiosks, our banks, our homes and even in our cars. And today, because they’re the primary interface of smartphones, touch screens are...
What is the Niagara Framework?
The Niagara Framework (NF) is developed by Tridium, and if you visit the company’s website, you will learn Niagara is a “comprehensive software platform for the development and deployment of connected products and device-to-enterprise applications.” If you’re...
After-Hours HVAC: 5 Reasons to Start Charging Tenants
Charging tenants for after-hours air conditioning (AHAC) presents many difficult questions for FMs. How do I calculate an hourly rate? How do I separate after-hours billing from normal utility OPEX? Do I have enough resources and staff? Calculating and managing...
How Energy Management Systems Help Your Properties
The move to smart buildings is here, and with it the demand for “smart power.” Innovations in wireless technology, monitoring hardware and cloud-based data are all making energy management systems a must have for FMs. Energy management ensures true power...