April 2023

M id A tlantic Real Estate Journal — Owners, Developers & Managers — April 2023 — 3C

www.marej.com

O wners , D evelopers & M anagers

By Alicia Mynarska, Withum Trends and Benefits in Smart Commercial Office Building Solutions

T

he commercial office real estate market has been undergoing an un -

estate entity and may include, among others, more efficient operations of the facility, vari - ous cost savings, reduction of energy consumption, and better utilization of other re - sources. From a sustainability perspective, smart technology may help to achieve Environ - mental, Social, and Gover - nance (ESG) goals and meet regulatory requirements. The new generation of building management systems would deploy artificial intelligence to analyze various aspects of operational tasks and organi - zational functions, eliminate

inefficiencies, and identify emerging opportunities. Tech - nological smart innovations may save time and labor by reducing human intervention and automatically recognizing and resolving issues that arise. For instance, smart mainte - nance systems would play a role in preventing accidents and system failures by detect - ing equipment malfunction or water leaks early before they become critical. Certain ser - vices like cleaning would be based on the actual needs of the space in real-time. Smart surveillance and security sys -

tems, biometric verification and facial recognition, and contactless visitor check-in would ensure safety and allow only authorized access. Mod - ern technology also enables effectiveness in lease portfolio management and provides metrics, analytics, insights and trends regarding the property or the entire portfolio. To provide optimal comfort and well-being to occupants, the smart office infrastructure will monitor and automatically adjust the lighting, tempera - ture, ventilation, air quality, and humidity levels in common

areas, individual workplaces, conference rooms, and more. Adjustments are based on fac - tors such as real-time existing conditions or occupancy, crowd size, traffic, or other distinctive needs. On the other hand, to optimize resource usage, smart technology will switch off devic - es when no presence of people is detected. Digital transfor - mation gives tenants more control over the utilization and rationalization of their spaces through smart parking, room or workstation reservations, or requesting special services, all continued on page 10C

precedented number of disruptions and monu - mental trans - formations. Consequent - ly, owners, investors, managers,

Alicia Mynarska

and operators of office spaces might consider new strategies and innovative solutions, such as smart building technologies. According to real estate ex - ecutives responding to a 2023 Deloitte Outlook Survey, ap - proximately only 9% of their portfolio is currently comprised of smart building investments. Therefore, implementing smart office building solutions may offer substantial advantages over competitors and be a key differentiating factor. Tech - nology may also bring various benefits to tenants by augment - ing occupants’ experiences, wellness, and health. In turn, this greater tenant satisfac - tion could translate into higher occupancies and rent rates, tenant retention, and renewal of leases. While smart office buildings are not rigorously defined, generally, smart buildings may involve things such as artificial intelligence, algorithms, Inter - net of Things (“IoT”) (where sensors continuously provide data through the Internet), advanced digitalization, digital twins, dashboards, data analyt - ics, and enhanced reporting software. Historically, advanc - es in smart building technolo - gies evolved from task-specific automations and, for example, the implementation of smart lighting, elevator, or HVAC systems. However, these dis - tinctive automated components and processes lacked central - ized monitoring and control, as well as interconnections amongst themselves without universal data sharing. In con - trast, today, smart office build - ings tend to include a central networking of numerous inte - grated systems communicating together that work to jointly to optimize their performances. Additionally, this enables end- users to obtain information and control in real-time using any convenient electronic device. The benefits of a smart build - ing can be tailored to specific priorities and needs of a real

Hudson Atlantic Realty Advisors A Commercial Real Estate Brokerage Company

Investment Sales Specialists

Cutting Edge Market Intelligence

Unparalleled Deal Making Skills

Adam Zweibel

Jeffrey Otteau

hudsonatlantic.com

732-374-9244

You only get to sell your property once, so choosing the right brokerage team matters

Made with FlippingBook Digital Proposal Creator