According to a study conducted by Memoori, the commercial building sector represents 11.8% of the total installed base of Internet of Things (IoT) devices worldwide. The research forecasts that the number of these devices in commercial buildings is expected to grow to 3.25 billion devices by 2028.
Integrating technology such as artificial intelligence (AI), IoT, and smart sensors into facilities management can streamline processes, augment workflows, and cut costs. Thousands of pieces of data are collected every day utilizing IoT sensors and systems; however, only a fraction of the data is utilized.
IoT sensors detect valuable environmental inputs, such as movement or temperature, and report back on changes. Without a process management app accompanying an IoT system to integrate and structure data across multiple systems and sensors, though, facilities managers may only see a portion of their business insights and performance, hindering smart building capabilities. In order to capitalize on the smart building revolution, facilities must ensure they are effectively integrating IoT systems, structuring with AI, and then automating necessary workflows from the data. Through this integrated approach, organizations can harness the power of smart data to improve compliance, drive cost savings, and bolster productivity.
Streamline Processes
Facilities managers have a lot on their plate and must cater to a variety of different audiences, from customers and stakeholders to vendors and beyond. They must maintain customer satisfaction in facility performance, while also managing operational costs, compliance audits, and more. Traditionally, these operations required tedious paperwork, manual tracking, and time-consuming reporting, which often increase costs, delay relevant insights, and, overall, decrease efficiency. With the new wave of advanced technology and the ability to enhance smart buildings, facilities managers have the opportunity to streamline every aspect of operations, while improving transparency and reporting in the process.
By integrating IoT systems with smart process management software, facilities managers can make the data they are already collecting work harder for them. Process management software can interpret and read the data that IoT sensors are detecting and respond with automated workflows in real time. Without manual interventions, necessary tasks or workflows can be automated and scheduled, ensuring timely and proactive responses to issues before they can become a larger problem.
For example, IT company Cisco Meraki wanted to improve its energy efficiency, among other things, and realized the company wasn’t utilizing its IoT sensors to their full potential. Through the installment of a process management app, Cisco Meraki facilities managers were able to maximize sensor data, monitoring temperature and humidity levels of their reading rooms and alerting when they fluctuated from the predetermined range. From there, management could automate necessary workflows to fix temperature issues, including equipment checks, maintenance orders, and more.
Save Time and Resources
In every industry, the evolution of technology and digitization has improved previously manual processes. For facilities management, the convergence of IoT, AI, and smart building technology has also helped save critical time and resources, cutting unnecessary costs and allowing teams to put time back toward vital operational initiatives.
For example, facility cleaning of common areas such as meeting rooms or restrooms has traditionally operated on a recurring schedule with cleaners coming in at the same time each day to execute the same level of cleaning, no matter the room usage. While this ensures clean facilities, it also often wastes unnecessary resources, as usage of these common areas varies drastically from day to day.
With the implementation of IoT sensors, facilities managers have increased visibility into usage to understand when an area is ready for cleaning. By using movement sensors to detect how often the door to a restroom or common room is opened, facilities managers can determine when usage has reached the point of needing cleaning. At that point, a process management app can automate assigning a cleaning service to tidy up each area. This ensures the same level of quality standards and cleanliness while cutting down on unnecessary cleanings and associated labor costs.
Making Informed Decisions
Slow manual reporting can delay insights, making it challenging for facilities managers to make timely, strategic decisions. By implementing technology such as AI and IoT and integrating systems for a more digitized approach, facilities managers can access critical data points in real time, allowing for informed decision-making. With the combination of process management software, facilities can automatically trigger appropriate responses without manual intervention. Through enhanced transparency and increased access to operational data, facilities managers can improve overall operational performance, tracking against key performance indicators (KPIs) and implementing changes quickly and effectively.
Facilities management teams often have millions of data points at their fingertips without any means to fully access, interpret, or act on it. As smart building technology continues to grow alongside the evolution of IoT and AI, facility operations will continue to be more empowered through improved workflows and processes. With process management software demonstrating the power of full system integration, the opportunities for a more streamlined, cost-effective, and data-driven approach to facilities management are endless.
Fred Whipp is the vice president of business development at process management app company mpro5.