Ask The Expert

This month’s expert unveils the truth behind smart buildings

• By Greg Young
• Mar 06, 2007

MOST have heard stories of the so-called smart buildings that align security and access control functions with fire, HVAC, lighting and audio systems.

Imagine a corporate attorney arriving at their 40-story office building to put in some weekend overtime. As the attorney arrives at work, they swipe their access card and gain entry to the underground parking garage. The elevator serving the 35th-floor office activates, and an elevator car is waiting for the attorney. As the attorney rides in the elevator, lights in the lobby, hallway and office turn on. It is a hot summer morning, but the attorney soon will be comfortable, as the air conditioning system was activated when the access card was swiped in the garage.

When the card user leaves four hours later, sensors detect the absence, the lights and air conditioning turn off, and the security system is rearmed. Meanwhile, a video surveillance system has followed the cardholder from the garage to their office, and then back to their car.

Q. How quickly are smart buildings becoming a real solution?
A. Smart buildings are in existence today, but they are still much more of the exception than the norm. However, building managers taking the leap toward integrated systems are reaping benefits beyond convenience and comfort. One government study estimates the integration of multiple building systems can save up to seven cents per square meter in operating costs.

And it is hard to put a price on potential improvements in life safety and security. Motion, heat, biochemical and other sensors and video cameras can provide firefighters, police and other first responders with real-time information on emergency conditions before personnel arrive on the scene.

For example, firefighters can use laptops to track the spread of a developing fire on a building floor plan. Other sensors can provide information on temperature and smoke conditions, the location of building occupants and the status of mechanical systems, elevators, lighting and the security system.

Q. Are there issues holding up the movement to smart buildings?
A. One issue slowing the movement to smart buildings is finding a vendor with expertise in all the various disciplines needed to make integration work. Most security integrators know very little about HVAC systems, and it is not likely many HVAC experts are familiar with IP cameras. Also, since the security industry has not embraced open standards, integrating systems from different manufacturers is a difficult process.

Although still fairly rare, there are some security systems integrators teaming with leading HVAC, lighting and other building systems experts in a region to create a virtual smart building integrator.

There are several other factors that seriously complicate the smart building scenario. The highly regulated nature of fire safety systems is one. For example, in order to host a fire system, a building’s computer network must be UL listed. There also can be problems with who will operate the new system. Hours of staff training will be necessary. Economically, a smart-building system makes most sense in new construction. Retrofitting an existing facility can be prohibitively expensive.

But advancements in computer technology, with the all-important ability to back-up data and create redundant systems, has helped ease some of the concerns over losing data and having all building systems shut down simultaneously.

Technological advances in commercial control panels for security systems help make smart buildings a reality. The panels now allow several systems to operate off the same control panel, such as access control and CCTV paired with HVAC, or access control and CCTV paired with lighting and temperature controls. Various control panels, providing different combinations of building components, are available.

And there are two open communications standards for building automation that are finally making headway in the market. The standards—Building Automation and Control Networks and Local Operating Network—offer an alternative to the vendor-specific software and communications protocols, which can make linking systems from multiple suppliers a difficult task.

READER QUESTION: I own three warehouses that I lease to tenants. I provide security that consists of fire and burglar alarms, and two card readers and cameras at each location. Lately, there have been several break-ins. I am recording the cameras, but not monitoring in real time. Would it be wiser for me to hire a couple of guards to monitor at night or work with a local monitoring company?
A. The development of systems that digitize video and transport it via TCP/IP across the Internet has made it possible to monitor video remotely. In fact, many monitoring companies now offer video monitoring services that work in conjunction with existing burglar alarm systems. These services consist of both video alarm verification, where operators at the monitoring company view video that has been associated with an alarm sent from an alarm panel, and video tours, where operators periodically check-in at a site and look for unusual activity as defined by the owner.

In both cases, two-way audio can be used in conjunction with the video monitoring to provide an added level of service.

Ask questions when making a decision on whether or not to use video monitoring services. Will the security and video systems need to be upgraded to provide adequate protection? Are the cameras placed in such a way as to provide quality video? Will the monitoring company be able to remotely monitor the existing video system? What are the legal and ethical commitments to tenants regarding site security?

In summary, there is no one-size-fits-all solution.