On the 1st April 2023, the requirements for commercial building owners to ensure their let buildings had an Energy Performance Certificate (EPC) with a rating of E or above was extended to include both new and existing leases. This, coupled with the growing push for change in traditional working environments, is causing both owners and occupiers to review their current space and consider whether changes need to be made.   

Whilst there are many ways for a building to be improved, the current market spotlight is on ‘Smart Buildings’ and how they can solve all of our problems. The question is, how?

Well, Smart Buildings have been said to offer a whole range of benefits including (but not limited to):-

  1. Improved occupant experience and productivity;
  2. Environmental and Financial benefits; and
  3. More efficient consumption of energy.

Sounds great, right? You can improve the wellbeing of occupiers, decrease running costs and meet the new energy efficiency requirements and all you need is a building that’s ‘Smart’. So, here’s the real question, what is a ‘Smart’ building and how is this different to a ‘not-so-smart’ building?

Well, we’ve done the research for you and we’re going to be delivering a four-part series covering the following:-

  1. ‘Smart Buildings’ – What are they? - where we’ll cover the basics of what makes a building ‘Smart’ without all the buzzwords and hidden meanings.
  2. What are the current trends for ‘Smart Buildings’ – where we’ll be covering the current market trends in Smart buildings.
  3. What are the current challenges facing ‘Smart Buildings’ – where we’ll be looking at issues like retrofitting vs new buildings and the potential risks of highly technological buildings.
  4. How do ‘Smart Buildings’ fit into the future? – where we’ll be considering how smart buildings might fit in the metaverse and what new technologies are on the horizon.

Click here for the first part of this series and stay tuned for the rest.