Society Now: Smart Buildings Trends & Challenges for a Secure Future - Mumbai

When it comes to buildings, the best example of technology that was possible to be given until a decade or two back was the centralized heating control, lighting control, and lift operation. But today, the range of eye-popping technology is to be seen to be believed. As we prepare to move into 2019, let us take at the hottest trends we see in smart buildings and the challenges we face.

Trends:

Earlier we used to have separate control systems set up for lifts, lighting, security etc. and all the different modules were aligned to a single Building Maintenance System (BMS). There was no interaction or inter dependability of these functions. We have now moved on to what is referred to as iBMS. Whether it is access, security, or energy, smart buildings now have several features to take care of all these aspects.
For example, in a building, not all employees need to go into all places, and it is now possible to allocate different levels of access to different areas. These areas are usually designated by different colors on badges. The access controls are usually aligned with the security alarm systems as well and can send notifications to the smart phones of specific managers.

The security aspects of a smart building have also undergone sea changes over the years. The emergency exits, the smoke and fire alarms and the surveillance camera systems of a typical smart building are all aligned. Most smart buildings have notification capabilities for the local police station and fire station.
Energy consumption is a big differentiator for smart buildings today. Use of electricity and heating systems are monitored, and the iBMS can modulate usage according to occupancy. Energy grids set up in smart buildings help to control the usage as per time and day of the week.

It is not only commercial or office buildings which are being designed in this way. There are several options available for society management software which can be used in a housing society app for these same benefits in the buildings of a cooperative society.

Challenges:

Although smart buildings are becoming very popular now, they do come with their own sets of risks and challenges. Because the setup of smart buildings requires the use of huge amounts of data, they can be prone to theft of such data. Such breach of security is not good for housing society management software, but for an office building or commercial building, the results can be even more disastrous. That is why robust security features will need to be incorporated.

Second, like every new fad, the usage of the phrase smart building has frequently been wrong. Many buildings are wrongly termed ‘smart' to make them sound more attractive. A really smart building would have automation, use of real-time data, integration of all elements and good energy management. But many so-called smart buildings do not have many or most of these.

A good apartment management software should be able to incorporate elements of tenant management, facility management and other related aspects seamlessly. But we still see examples of so-called ‘smart’ building which do generate and collect large amounts of data but in silos, and the integration is halfhearted at best, and missing at worst. Only a good software like Society Now would help you integrate perfectly.