Building Automation Communication and Transmission Najave II SMAhome Software

Fixed Network Foundation Layer for 21st Century Smart Buildings

Digital infrastructure technologies are now available to the building industry as it seeks to reduce energy consumption while hosting billions of connected devices. The use of Ethernet cable infrastructure for combined power and data communications solves smart building connectivity, power delivery, network topology, and thermal management issues. This will streamline processes and improve building performance while creating fully connected and environmentally sustainable 21st-century spaces.

By: Robert Zore, Business Development Manager, EGAL

In a security context, public and private multiple and single-use buildings require ever more security and access control. For example, schools, hospitals, government, and other public buildings must balance the needs for accessibility and security by ensuring a building’s physical security at access points and through the expansion of video monitoring. Another change is that the future direction of buildings in urban environments is upward. That means major changes to modern buildings as multi-use and shared environments become ever more common. It is forecast that future city dwellers will live, work, learn, and find leisure within single complexes. This will fundamentally change the number of data sources and data patterns managed by the infrastructure. Single-use environments will also see more need for robust, secure, low-energy digital infrastructure.

These trends all point towards ever-increasing numbers and variety of connected nodes, and the necessity to maintain energy use with optimized parameters for buildings. BSRIA’s (Building Services Research and Information Association) Convergence and Digitalisation of Commercial Buildings in the US, predicts substantial growth for PoE-powered devices across the business environment, as illustrated below:

Device Use Cases

Infrastructure operations, interactivity, and interoperability have been evolving toward PoE over time. The use of PoE started with VoIP in the 1990s, moved on to CCTV around 2000, and onto HVAC controls and lighting. This expansion of capabilities meant the control of these applications being transferred onto the data infrastructure plane. Now PoE is extending to powering and communicating with an ever-growing variety of physical devices.

Low voltage cameras, embedded sensors, kiosks, wireless access points, physical access points, digital signage, and displays are being deployed in ever greater numbers. Market forecasts show an explosion in the number of devices about to enter buildings. Wireless access point numbers alone are forecast to expand by 30% per year until 2027. Kiosks and digital screens will become ubiquitous in multi-use environments.

According to a report on the Global Kiosk Market, published by KBV research, the global kiosk market will reach $5.4 billion by 2024, at a growth rate of 26.4% CAGR. The demand for self-service machines and automated devices, wireless communication, technology advancements, and remote management are some of the notable factors driving the global kiosk market.

Proven, Viable, and Cost-effective Solution

High-performance cable infrastructure is the base layer for these smart technologies. All these different devices need to run over a single network that provides power and data. With lower installation costs, fewer hazards, and more flexibility, PoE is a proven, viable, cost-effective solution. Since 1995, history tells us that connected devices are moving to PoE for power. For example, the latest standards show PoE delivering up to 99w over twisted pair cables – this is easy enough to power the latest lighting, wireless access points, kiosks, and more.

 In the built environment, too many networks remain siloed and separate. This approach is no longer suitable for the new era of intelligent buildings. The new generation of architects and engineers are those responsible for the delivery of the next generation of smart digital buildings. Understanding the power and benefits of future-proofed PoE cable infrastructure is at the core of physical, economic, and digital innovation.

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