Intelligent CIO Africa Issue 13 | Page 19

LATEST INTELLIGENCE THE BUSINESS BENEFITS OF AUTOMATED INFRASTRUCTURE MANAGEMENT IN CONNECTED AND EFFICIENT BUILDINGS A utomated infrastructure management (AIM) solutions are hardware/ software systems that monitor, map and document connectivity across an entire network, even a diverse and complex network as found in an intelligent building. As more applications and services come to market – each offering time, money or efficiency advantages – it soon becomes impractical to monitor and manage the network manually. Thanks to published TIA-606, ISO/IEC 14763-2 and ISO/IEC 18598 standards, the role and potential of AIM solutions in the modern connected and efficient building are now established, unlocking a world of potential for enterprises. Connectivity, efficiency and AIM As the intelligent building evolves, its scope, capabilities and even its definition continue to change as well. What truly is an ‘intelligent’ or ‘smart’ building today? While the specifics will vary widely from place to place, they will all have two characteristics in common: connectivity and efficiency. In connected and efficient buildings, the focus is on leveraging emerging technologies to connect people, information and devices in order to drive greater productivity and efficiency. The newest infrastructure found in today’s connected and efficient buildings supports audio/visual systems, sensors, lighting, IT, security and building management applications. This is all in addition to the building’s wired and wireless technologies, sharing space, in many instances, with the broader Internet of Things (IoT). Still, this diverse ecosystem all boils down to enabling person-to-person, person-to-machine and machine-to-machine communications. n Download whitepapers free from www.intelligentcio.com/me/whitepapers/ www.intelligentcio.com INTELLIGENTCIO 19