Building with a brain

Smart buildings are transforming the way facilities are designed, built and operated.

According to the US Green Building Council, green buildings are supposed to transform the way buildings and communities are designed, built and operated. If done properly, green buildings can facilitate a socially responsible, healthy environment that improves the quality of life of its users.

If that's the case, the answer to improving building quality and performance as well as user satisfaction in the Middle East is simple: identify clear, contextually-relevant reasons for building more green buildings. Cool, we've done that....

Rising energy costs. Power shortages. Corporate social responsibility. Green buildings decrees. Increased carbon footprint. Global citizenry. Political correctness.

All are bona fide reasons for designing and building more intelligently but perhaps they're all a bit too feel-good to really motivate developers to build with a collective conscience. No worries, maybe it's better to focus on the legislative structures....

Estidama. EmiratesLEED. Mandatory progression. Green Building Councils. Abu Dhabi 2030. Dubai 2015.

All are either too new, too ambiguous or too lackadaisical to warrant interrupting that corporate drive toward cheap materials and quick returns. With several globally-recognised exhibitions all devoting large chunks of their shows to the convergence of IT and building systems, building smart and building green is starting to go hand in hand.

But, in order to fast-track project delivery in the Middle East's highly competitive market, many developers opt for the old-fashioned route: Equipping modern structures with traditional systems that use proprietary networks for building management systems and separate networks for telephony, data and television.

With buildings being the largest consumers of energy, producers of waste and emitters of greenhouse gases, it's essential for developers to build smart and build green. And, it's up to FMs, Chief Information Officers (CIOs) and Chief Technology Officers (CTOs) to figure out ways to use those smart technologies to realise the largest returns in the shortest amount of time.

The figures

Smart buildings-those that feature cutting-edge, fibre-optic networking designed to improve operating efficiencies and reduce operational expenses-boast lower energy consumption, which translates to lower energy bills for users and ideally, happier tenants. According to Ashley Katz, a spokeswoman for the USGBC, "A green building saves 30-50% of energy, 35% of CO₂ emissions, 40% of water and 70% of solid waste." But smart buildings are about more than just happy tenants.

According to Tom Shircliff, co-founder and director of R&D for US-based Intelligent Buildings Group, "Building systems, LEED-related monitor and control systems and occupant IT are increasingly interrelated, if not interoperable."

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