by Jim Sinopoli

If it was easy to define a smart building in one sentence then every building owner would have a smart building. Unfortunately, that's not possible. Buildings are multifaceted and have a variety of uses. You only need to look at the number of people on a design team and the specifications required for new construction to begin to understand the complexity of many buildings. For example, the Construction Specifications Institute's MasterFormat for building specifications has 35 active specification divisions and another 15 divisions reserved for future expansion, which cover everything from conveying equipment to moisture protection and wastewater equipment.

This series is about moving from the abstraction of a smart building to a few important details or attributes of a smart building. Today we address three key elements: networks and security, fire alarm and occupant satisfaction.

Buildings enable their occupants to work, play, meet, shop, sleep, eat, socialize, educate, learn and a host of other things. So one of the performance criteria of a building should be how well it succeeds in satisfying its occupants. This involves their comfort, both physically and psychologically. The physical part is straightforward involving thermal comfort, appropriate lighting for the occupants' activity, the occupant's control of the lighting and air distribution, the workspace layouts and the technology systems available to the occupants to make their tasks easier. The physiological effect may relate to the building's image, appearance and aesthetics and how it impacts an occupant's perception of their environment.

Continue reading...