Summary

This introductory chapter provided you with a view of what it might look like to work inside a smart building and the many productivity, comfort, and efficiency improvements that IoT smart buildings can deliver for the occupants. We established an understanding of what the IoT and smart buildings are and then we connected them together to see the endless possibilities for smart building applications.

These IoT smart building applications solve many of the challenges faced by building owners and operators today. They deliver safe, efficient buildings that are energy efficient, reduce operations and energy costs, increase the value of the asset, and deliver a greatly improved quality of experience for the occupants. All buildings, regardless of function (schools, hospitals, retail premises, hotels, offices, factories, etc.), can achieve these benefits. Since buildings are a microcosm of a city with many similar challenges and requirements, the way to smart cities will need to start with smart buildings.

We touched on a brief history of how building management systems evolved from pneumatic controls to the smart buildings of today. Since a building is made up of a number of systems, the next chapter will review these key systems, their functionality, and how each of these will greatly benefit from IoT smart building applications that you can design to create a smart building.