Dive Brief:
- Siemens announced it will acquire Enlightened, a Silicon Valley-based provider of internet of things systems for commercial and residential buildings.
- Enlightened’s IoT platform of data-driven sensors claims the technology helps reduce buildings’ energy use and improve space utilization. For example, installed on a light fixture, the sensors collect data on environment and occupancy changes and react in real time. Enlightened claimed it can integrate with Siemens’ existing tools to optimize HVAC efficiencies as well.
- Following projected completion of the purchase in the third quarter, Enlightened will remain an independent, wholly owned subsidiary of Siemens.
Dive Insight:
The acquisition is just the latest in a series of moves showing that Siemens, part of German automation firm Siemens AG, has been investing time and money in smart building technologies. The announcement came one day after Siemens’ purchase of J2 Innovations, a software framework provider of building automation and IoT. J2’s FIN framework operates and monitors equipment and automation systems in buildings, saving owners operating and energy costs. Siemens says it has 80,000 connected buildings and 400 million data values analyzes each day.
In a report released this week, Memoori Research estimates that the combined global market for building IoT will grow from around $35 billion in 2017 to more than $84 billion by 2022. The report attributes some of the growth to a refocusing by industry stakeholders on how the solutions bring value to business owners and occupants, rather than on the technology itself.
According to another recent study, commercial real estate owners report that 80% of new construction has at least one IoT or other smart building technology. The growth is driven in part by the recognition that intelligent buildings bring higher leasing fees.
Data and communication between components are essential for full success with IoT. Three of the ways IoT can bring intelligence to building operations, according to IoTForAll, are predictive energy optimization, preventative maintenance and fault detection and improved tenant comfort.
