It is safe to say that the prospect of artificial intelligence and machine learning (AI/ML) as performance tools in your building systems is less daunting than it once appeared. Ditto the utilization of cell phones, which can serve today in capacities once undreamed of--to both engage tenants and gauge their satisfaction with that performance.
In short, the office environment of today relies on technology, and both advancements were given thorough analyses during the recent BOMA International Conference & Expo in Kansas City.
Systems in your buildings—the lights, the HVAC—can collect massive amounts of critical data on usage and your tenants. But what are you doing with all that data, especially as it concerns the safe and efficient operation of those systems? The folks of Honeywell, in “Using AI to Exponentially Increase Savings and Reduce Carbon,” advocated for AI and ML as the funnels through which raw data can be synthesized into an operational tool. Dani Stern and Sheeladitya Karmakar took the assembled crowd through five steps toward decarbonization through these related tools:
Monitoring carbon emissions at the building or portfolio level; Deploying system-agnostic controls to reduce energy consumption; Leveraging AI and ML for improved efficiency, air quality and occupant comfort; Integrating power demand- and supply-optimization tools to reduce costs and meet carbon-neutral goals; and maintaining those goals with preventive maintenance.
AI and ML working together not only provide flexibility in setting outcomes, but they also optimize energy-intensive assets to reduce consumption. All of this while reducing the need for manual intervention to extend asset performance.
However, while AI and ML can improve such outcomes, how successfully a building performs in terms of air quality, comfort and safety is measured largely in terms of tenant satisfaction. In other words, expectations of tech performance filter down through the connectivity between tenants and building management. And the prime tool of that connectivity is the cell phone.
“If you come to a building that has the technology to allow easy connectivity with your tenants, it shows that you as a property manager, as an owner, are on their best game,” said Brian Harnetiaux of Affinius Capital in “Getting Smart About Smart Buildings.” That is a powerful statement to make, he noted, to potential, current and renewing tenants. “It shows that you’re doing what needs to be done.”
Through a building management app, building executives can communicate to tenants about everything from when the next yoga class begins to the reason why they’re hearing sirens outside their windows. And it can do more.
“We all take tenant surveys,” said Jason McIntyre of Affinius Capital, “and we all do work orders. Can our work orders also reflect tenant satisfaction?” He said they can by tracking how fast an issue was resolved and how well.
Sarah Buckles of GlenStar Asset Management agreed, but she added another vital element: security. “There’s the expectation today that people can step into your asset and have the connectivity they need to do their work and do it securely. As property managers, we need to think about how we can continue to make this connectivity as open but as secure as possible.”
Property managers aren’t competing just against other local-area buildings. As McIntyre pointed out, we’re also competing against the work-from-home phenomenon.
“Any way we can help people come back and feel that engagement with building management, any way we can make them feel more welcome, the better,” he said. The cell phone is the vehicle to achieve that goal.
Traditional amenities will remain important to a tenant’s overall experience of the office. But more than ever, there is much more to maximizing that overall experience. Today, it falls to such technologies as AI, ML and cell phone connectivity to enhance both the performance of the built environment and your tenants’ satisfaction with it.
About the Author
John Salustri is editor-in-chief of Salustri Content Solutions, a national editorial advisory firm based in East Northport, New York. He is best known as the founding editor of GlobeSt.com. Prior to launching GlobeSt.com, Salustri was editor of Real Estate Forum.