Smart Buildings – The Connectivity Challenge

Steve Jarvis, Cordless Commercial Director gives an insight into how to tackle the priorities in Smart Building Connectivity.

In today’s world, the bottom layer of Maslow’s Hierarchy of Needs has been portrayed by some as “Wi-Fi” – more fundamental than “food, water and warmth.”

The requirement for connectivity, to be always on, to access your mail, social media, and other apps has become paramount.

As buildings become smarter, this requirement is emerging as a key consideration for developers, landlords and occupiers alike.

Developers and Landlords need to ensure their buildings are well connected, meeting the minimum standards set out by the WiredScore standard. Services must be presented by a variety of ISPs/Carriers, entering the building via diverse routes into resilient Comms Rooms. But that’s not all. Distribution around the building should be via diverse risers, with the ability to blow fibres to any floor quickly, enabling occupiers to gain rapid connection and network access.

In addition, developers should be considering deploying Wi-Fi services in all communal spaces, and, especially taller buildings, 4G/5G access to all major mobile operators.

Occupiers now expect the levels of connectivity outlined above as a minimum from the buildings they are considering, then to deliver a highly collaborative, agile workplaces, are installing high speed Wi-Fi networks, ZigBee networks for low latency IoT connectivity, and resilient wired connections for specialised users.

After all, if all your business applications and systems reside in a Data Centre or the cloud, if you’re not connected, all you really can do is: “eat, drink and keep warm!”

To talk to Cordless about Smart Building Connectivity, say hello@cordless.co.uk