International. The average brick-and-mortar store is evolving. Customer experience is paramount and store owners are now looking to design buildings to drive customer traffic. According to Chain Store Age, retailers are rapidly adopting interactive technology that benefits both the customer and building management. Based on their list of "Smart Building Trends," here are some concepts that facility managers should keep in mind:
Energy efficiency is key:
According to Energy Star, "On average, 30 cents of every dollar spent on energy use in commercial buildings is wasted due to inefficiencies." Energy Star suggests choosing energy-efficient systems, one of the easiest and most cost-effective ways to reduce energy use.
Use Smart Controls:
Many retailers are implementing consumer-facing apps and innovations to attract customers, but smart technologies can also be a game-changer for building management. For example, Mitsubishi Electric Cooling & Heating's Diamond Controls combines automation and facility management to allow users to control multiple systems through a single interface. Users can control an entire building or multiple construction sites with Diamond Controls.
Augmented Reality for Maintenance:
Last year, IBM claimed that "augmented reality is transforming building management." Augmented reality allows users to experience and interact with video, images and audio, which are superimposed on real physical spaces and objects, through their smart devices. For example, QR codes can be programmed and scanned to reveal pertinent information about a system to a contractor. This can help easily identify any problems or errors within a system.
From an HVAC perspective, there are many changes and evolutions in the industry that can benefit commercial spaces.
Source: Mitsubishi Electric Cooling & Heating.
