The issue of sustainability concerns everyone. Sustainable building management is becoming more and more important. The ecological possibilities over the entire life cycle of buildings are endless. With Deutsche Telekom’s Internet of Things (IoT) these potentials can be digitally exploited.
The design, construction methods and used building materials play a significant role in the sustainability of buildings. Inefficient buildings drive up energy consumption. However, an environmentally friendly building management is relevant for achieving the Paris climate Agreement. According to the United Nations Environment Program, the construction industry is responsible for almost 40 percent of all energy and process-related emissions. While the average energy demand of buildings continues to rise, the pressure for change is growing. The demands of politics and the market are increasing. The European Union, for instance, has set itself the goal of becoming climate-neutral by 2050.
Letting heat escape out of the window? Not with us!
In Deutsche Telekom's latest survey on "IoT and Sustainability" 76 percent of the IoT experts say that companies will rely on IoT solutions for building control to achieve their environmental goals. However, in practice, building management is often not environmentally friendly. Depending on the season, rooms are centrally heated or air-conditioned. At the same time windows are left wide open and rooms are empty. Lights in offices stay on overnight. Wasting energy pollutes the environment and negatively impacts the climate balance of the respective company. The economic damage is high. Unnecessary energy consumption should not be underestimated. According to the US Environmental Protection Agency, on average 30% of the energy consumed in commercial buildings is wasted.
Internet of Things applications for buildings create transparency: Buildings can be easily retrofitted with Deutsche Telekom's IoT solution "Building Monitoring & Analytics". Sensors are attached to windows, doors, desks and walls. They detect the opening and closing of windows and doors, as well as the movement of people. The sensors measure temperature, humidity, light, noise and CO2 values in rooms. Deutsche Telekom's "Cloud of Things" IoT platform evaluates the collected data. It provides transparency regarding energy and water consumption, space utilization and air quality. The IoT solution helps to save costs and enables a more positive environmental balance.
Light off - sustainability on
Hygiene articles and detergents are ordered unnecessarily often. This leads to a high paper and plastic consumption. The IoT Service Button reorders products such as hygiene products at the touch of a button. This saves resources. The digital button also simplifies and digitizes processes: For example, it tracks building cleaning operations online, thereby reducing paper consumption. Predictive maintenance in ventilation systems also helps the environment: Intelligent fans in buildings detect errors in the system. The ventilation technology networked with sensors collects data on temperatures, vibrations or power consumption every second. This means that craftsmen no longer need to carry out regular maintenance, but only when it is necessary. This saves unnecessary journeys and corresponding emissions.
Internet of Things solutions help companies to make processes more sustainable. Deutsche Telekom's IoT experts are convinced of this. They expect that in five years an average of 40 percent of all commercial buildings in Germany will be smartly controlled - from heating, lighting, ventilation, air conditioning technology to the digital measurement of consumption values.
Deutsche Telekom has also been actively involved in climate protection since the 1990s. Today, customers of Deutsche Telekom in Germany can already surf the green internet. The Group's entire electricity requirements in Germany are already covered 100 percent by renewable energies.
