What Are Smart Office Solutions? Indoor Collaboration Meets Smart Building Tech - Hyderabad

In industry circles, the discussions around adopting smart office solutions predominantly focus on two aspects - technologies which can automate processes related to lighting management, energy usage & statistics, HVAC infrastructure management, and common spaces (conference/meeting rooms, pantry area, sick bays, etc.) usage, which are collectively known as 'smart building technology' and two, on workforce collaboration tools designed to enhance productivity while keeping staff notified on latest developments at the office.

smart building technology

While they seem most relevant, these smart office technologies are not dynamic. These are needed by today's offices, of course, especially by large ones. However, for tomorrow's offices, infrastructure & operations managers need to look at emerging technologies that are truly smart.

The need is to look at real-time technologies that combine flexible hardware with a user-friendly application interface. For that, we need to look beyond tech that guarantees isolated management of devices and bring into the picture a robust, dynamic tech which integrates varied processes into one comprehensive unit

Simply put, smart office technology is a combination of smart buildings and workforce communication tools.

Smart Office Technology
Popular notions about smart office technology look at solutions aimed at cutting through redundancies generated from lighting, security systems or the HVAC infrastructure. Market analysis & projection firm Market Insights Reports' latest release focusing on the global smart office market scenario from 2020-25 looks at these aspects as well.

smart office technology

However, emerging technologies for deft management of office spaces, especially large ones, includes management of both hot and cold, movable and immovable assets located within the facility. While lighting, HVAC, tables & chairs, paper printers, conference rooms, telecommunication devices can be considered 'cold' assets as they do not move frequently within the building. In contrast, the workforce, products, stationery & pantry ware can be considered 'hot' assets as their movements are more frequent.

Sensor-Based Smart Office Solutions... And Beyond
Research in the area of smart office solutions indicates that smart device based applications can control various aspects of the office environment. The use of appropriate hardware in combination with a user-friendly interface is the solution - sensors can be used for hardware for this office control system.

Aspects of the office environment include:

Temperature & Lighting Control
Conference/Meeting Room Attendance & Usage Statistics
Top-Down Communication
In addition to sensors, beacons or RFID can also be used as hardware to tag assets and track them in real-time in an office space. While there are hardware options that aid 'smart' management of the office, the choices for software or APK are limited.

You either get an application-based system for regulating a few of the issues related to temperature, lighting & usage or gather historical data through CCTV footage. What is needed is an interactive indoor collaboration app for office spaces which can give you data points from a 360-degree office management perspective, in real-time.