7 Real World Uses for Sensor Technology in Buildings
Monday, 13th June 2022
Sensor technology can detect environmental changes, allow for continuous monitoring, and alert you to anomalies more precisely and efficiently than manual work ever can. From smart homes to offices and buildings, sensors enable businesses and individuals to be more efficient, functional, and healthy.
Sensors are just one part of a larger trend of devices, technologies, and objects known as the Internet of Things (IoT) that’s allowing businesses, homeowners, landlords, and facility managers to efficiently run buildings in sustainable ways.
These technologies can help companies meet a wide range of environmental targets and compliance needs, while collecting data to make more effective business decisions. And at Infogrid, we have a track record of implementing sensors in buildings, alongside a customised platform that allows you to monitor and optimise building health in real time.
Here are just some real-life examples of how sensor technology can work in offices and beyond.
1. Climate control
Across different workplaces—from office spaces to cold storage solutions—climate control in the past happened manually. Individuals would need to measure and optimise the temperature and humidity by opening and closing windows, or by adjusting heating, ventilation, and air conditioning systems (HVAC).
But today, climate control has largely become automated, with sensors detecting the environment’s temperature and IoT solutions making automatic adjustments to maintain the required settings.
At Infogrid, we can help set up systems for HVAC sensors across all workplaces. These sensors automatically send data on temperature and other metrics to a central dashboard, enabling managers or individuals to control indoor climate all from one place.
This means optimal indoor conditions all the time. It’s cost effective, too, ensuring that climate control systems are only used when they’re needed. Sensors like these enabled one supermarket chain to save $1.6 million a year on HVAC alone.
Infogrid can also install temperature sensors in particularly challenging settings, such as cold storage for pharmaceuticals. For example, we installed sensors for an NHS Trust’s cold storage units to monitor and maintain the temperature every five minutes, without the need for manual intervention.
2. Air quality checks
Climate control doesn’t stop at temperature regulation. Alongside monitoring HVAC, smart technologies can also offer insight into indoor CO2 levels, volatile organic compounds (VOCs), humidity, light levels, and air pressure, across the entirety of your site or company.
Monitoring indoor air quality can improve efficiency, help meet ESG targets, and reduce labour costs.
Infogrid’s IoT sensor solutions can optimise air quality by identifying when it needs to be improved. Infogrid research suggests that a majority of workers are now more concerned about office safety in light of the Covid-19 pandemic. To reassure employees and reduce viral risk, improving indoor air quality is a must.
Find out more about how here: How to Measure Indoor Air Quality
3. Automated maintenance monitoring
Sensor technology means you’re never left wondering when equipment is in need of repair. Infogrid’s smart sensors can help keep your equipment in check, and alert you to when a manual intervention is required. This speeds up the maintenance of faulty or broken equipment, and prevents maintenance issues before they even become a problem.
For one client, we fitted maintenance check sensors into pipes to monitor the quality of the water supply. These automatically monitor the water temperature and movement, thereby reducing the risk of contamination. This freed up the company’s maintenance teams from routine checks, so they could focus on more important tasks.
Our IoT solution took one only hour to install, and it meant the company reduced the time it spent on water quality compliance by 81%. Maintenance sensors can also detect leaks before they become a problem, saving extra labour costs and damages in the future.
4. Live occupancy data
As offices and buildings start to fill up again after work-at-home rules, occupancy monitoring will become a key tool for measuring the safety of those within the building. Getting live occupancy data of where people are can help reduce viral risk, manage safe numbers of individuals, and help managers adhere to required safety standards and limits.
Infogrid’s door sensors can help. These provide real-time data of where people are and what spaces they’re using. That means you can get insight into the numbers of employees using the office—unobtrusively and in real time.
It can help facilities managers make smarter decisions about maximum occupancy, climate control, and environmental monitoring. Further, with the help of temperature and air quality sensors, you can make informed decisions about office or building management and planning.
5. Safety and security checks
Door and window sensors can improve safety and security monitoring, too. Infogrid installed discrete door monitors on approximately 8,000 fire safety doors on apartments for one client, ensuring they weren’t being propped open for large periods of time and increasing risk in the event of a fire. Our monitors were able to send back real-time data and ensure residents were taking appropriate action when fire doors were left open for long periods of time.
Door sensors can also help monitor concerns such as tailgating and unauthorised access to ensure certain areas are kept secure. Similar sensors can monitor the opening and closing of safes and drawers, or anywhere else sensitive information or valuables may be stored.
6. Cleanliness monitoring
Manual cleaning has typically been rota led, with cleaning scheduled at regular intervals regardless of facility use and cleanliness. However, a manual cleaning schedule can lead to inefficient use of resources, making it more costly and time consuming.
IoT sensor technology, on the other hand, allows users to gather data on traffic, occupancy, and usage, indicating which areas are most used, so cleaning resources can be better allocated. This allows cleaning staff to be more efficient and garner more positive feedback from users by directing their energies to crucial areas.
Infogrid did this with toilet facilities in a shopping centre in London. We equipped every toilet with three unobtrusive sensors which monitored traffic, feedback, and usage. When compared to the manual cleaning schedule, there were significant differences in where and how resources were being assigned.
The result of switching to sensors? Our client reports more efficient cleaning services, savings of £15,000 a year for every ten bathrooms across the centre, greater customer satisfaction, and improved employee retention.
7. Customer feedback
Speaking of customer satisfaction, you can use sensors for that, too. Feedback buttons are typically used in public toilets, airports and service centres. Our wipe-clean feedback panels work in a similar way, but they communicate with other smart technology in order to cut costs.
These sensors can be used in service centres, or can be implemented for employees or tenants. They can help identify feedback and trends in a much quicker, more streamlined way. Creating greater customer, employee, or tenant satisfaction will increase happiness, loyalty, and efficiency and reduce turnover rate.
Setting up smart sensors
Whatever the specific needs of the building you’re looking to kit out, sensor technology will improve efficiency, saving time and energy when it comes to monitoring, maintenance and even receiving customer feedback.
It ultimately promises to save energy and reduce labour costs, enabling you to meet your ESG goals. Finally, sensor technology enables you to make your buildings smart, providing you with data to inform smarter business decisions and investments in the future.
Ready to set up sensor technology in your building? Get in touch with Infogrid to find out how.
