detected, at the touch of a button. Along with the ability to track people within a space, and how they use it, a smart building can then begin to use predictive management, for instance switching water off at night or when a certain area is not in use. In a time when resources such as water and energy are scarce, the ability to monitor, control and even anticipate usage is vital for sustainability as well as cost savings. Solar energy is another area where IoT is coming to the fore, along with occupational health and safety( OHS), in terms of compliance, as well as functional requirements, your smart building can even tell you when to water your plants. In short, from creating experiences to green building monitoring and sustainability, IoT is the future of FM.
Don’ t ignore the challenges Malware, hackers and bots( sophisticated automated hacking programmes, similar to worms or Trojans) are all a threat to any internet-connected device. The solution is to ensure that the devices used to connect to and run this technology are separate to the devices( such as smartphones and laptops) that you use for work and personal business. However, that isn’ t always possible, so it’ s imperative that you also change all your passwords regularly( and stay away from the obvious – birthdays, pet names, 1234, Password), and keep up to date with your antivirus software.
Privacy and the ethics of collecting personal data and monitoring people are another challenge, but it’ s also more of a generational thing. Ask a Millennial how they feel about it, and most will say they aren’ t bothered by the idea of Big Brother watching their every move – the benefits of technology far outweigh notions of privacy for them. For example, in the Netherlands, if you choose to have a public persona on your smart device, beacons track your daily movements and predict your behaviour based on your habits. You could be walking down a street in the city centre and have your phone alert you to the fact that your favourite boutique is having a sale at a branch 100m away. For some, this is an unacceptable invasion of privacy, for others, it’ s a fantastic perk of predictive technology based on big data.
A comforting thought is that, for now at least, there’ s very little that’ s ominous about merely tracking feet through doors and general space usage in a building – your shopper cards already give away far more personal data than that with every swipe.
What is Big Data? According to the Oxford online dictionary, big data is“ extremely large data sets that may be analysed computationally to reveal patterns, trends, and associations, especially relating to human behaviour and interactions.” All the data captured by smart devices is stored. Until recently it was cheaper to store it than to delete it, even though it wasn’ t of any use. It’ s pointless accumulating data just for the sake of having it – you need to know what to do with it. You need to know what data you want, why you want it, and how you’ re going to use it to benefit your business. Once you have that knowledge, analysing the relevant data can give you important insights into many areas, from space utilisation to product flow, process management, water usage and so on. Big data can even lead to preventative and predictive maintenance, something that’ s very close to the FM’ s heart.
Where do we go from here? South Africa is still in the early adopter phase of the Internet of Things. Systems and frameworks are slowly being put in place and the technology, such as smart lighting, is readily available but not widely used. New buildings are beginning to incorporate these technologies, and retrofitting is becoming a more mainstream option for existing buildings. We’ re still in the early stages, but we haven’ t been inexcusably slow off the starting blocks, either.
Laval says that in areas such as the GSM tracking space, South Africa has done very well and could even be considered industry leaders and innovators. We were also one of the first countries to do machineto-machine communication, which can be seen as a precursor to IoT. We also have good niche skills in terms of customised products for different business verticals – often necessary for deriving definitive business value, as well as good price points. With the private sector driving demand and legislation( particularly in terms of green and sustainable buildings) soon to follow, SA is hot on the heels of the global leaders.
DOES THIS MEAN THAT FM AS WE KNOW IT WILL BECOME OBSOLETE?
Not necessarily. While industry experts acknowledge that FM professionals must move with the times, and that the job description of the FM of tomorrow will be quite different to that of today, there is still place for the FM as more than just a glorified IT manager. Tomorrow’ s FM will be a complete workplace manager. All that big data needs to be shaped and used by someone, someone who understands the day-to-day processes of the built environment and the people within it, who understands how the two interact and affect each other, and how that data can be used to enhance and even create experiences.
RESOURCES
SAFMA
38 JUNE 2017 SA Real Estate Investor www. reimag. co. za