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The Smarter City Business and Building Management

Hisakazu Okamura, IBM expert on smart cities

Hisakazu Okamura, an IBM expert on smart cities and author of a number of books on the subject, recently presented the IBM "SmarterCity” concept and its impact on facility management at the Johnson Controls GWS customer-only Strategic Advisory Board event in Tokyo.

Buildings are complex with multiple control and maintenance systems, including heating and cooling, lighting, communications, security and access controls. These systems are designed to keep occupants safe and comfortable.

However, the number of people living in cities has increased rapidly in recent years, which has placed unprecedented demands on our buildings and city infrastructure. In 1900, only 13 percent of the world's population lived in cities. By 2050, that number will have risen to 70 percent. We are adding the equivalent of seven New Yorks to the planet every year. If there was ever a time to focus on the smart growth of our urban areas, that time is now.

Replacing the actual city infrastructures is often unrealistic in terms of cost and time. However, with recent advances in technology, we can infuse our existing infrastructures with new intelligence. By this, we mean digitizing and connecting our systems, so they can sense, analyze and integrate data, and respond intelligently to the needs of building inhabitants. In short, we can revitalize them so they can become smarter and more efficient.


Key facts include:

  • Worldwide, buildings consume 42 percent of all electricity
  • By 2025, buildings will be the largest emitters of greenhouse gases
  • All other things being equal, eight-out-of-10 employees would prefer to work in a “green building”
  • Buildings lose as much as half of the water that flows into them
  • Energy represents about 30 percent of an office building’s total operating costs
  • In the US, buildings consume 70 percent of all electricity, up to 50 percent of which is wasted

 

Given these facts, it is no surprise that an effort is ongoing to address the efficiency and usability of buildings. The Smarter Buildings initiative helps to deal with these challenges.

So what are Smarter Buildings?

IBM SmarterCity concept

They are well managed, integrated physical and digital infrastructures that provide optimal occupancy services in a reliable, cost-effective and sustainable manner. Smarter buildings help their owners, operators and facility managers improve asset reliability and performance that, in turn, reduces energy use, optimizes how space is used and minimizes the environmental impact of their buildings.

Smart buildings:

  • Are more cost-effective by reducing energy and operating costs
  • Use active and designed-in techniques to achieve reliability, efficiency and environmental responsibility
  • Provide visibility, control and automation to building systems
  • Maintain a safer and more secure workplace
  • Communicate in real time to supporting infrastructure (such as smart grid and broadband)
  • Have the ability to interact with occupants inside them as well as the environment around them

 

How can we move beyond fragmented and opportunistic “green” tactics to adapt and transform all aspects of building operations?
The main issue is to keep information such as energy usage and the facility efficiency visible not only for building owners but for all related stakeholders. Once the data is available, different types of management strategies and initiatives can be combined and efficient, continuous ideas could solve the problem. Data openness is the first step towards a tighter, collaborated effort towards efficiently managed buildings.

The IBM “SmarterCity” concept is present in more than 2,000 city projects around the world, including cities like Chicago, where IBM currently supports data handling and Johnson Controls takes practical actions in building management.

The role of buildings is expanding. From stadiums to schools, they are not just physical structures but they define the quality of life for its inhabitants and the city itself. Given the expected rise in urbanization in the coming decades, cities will have to be places where many different people and companies collectively work to make our lives better and more sustainable.
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