Communicating The Benefits Of Proptech For A More Sustainable Future
By Inigo Melis, Managing Director of 444 Digital.
Proptech has made real time measurement of sustainability matrices possible, but how do we best communicate this to tenants to encourage better behaviour?
The surge in energy prices has made us all more conscious of the need to conserve energy, while COP27 has highlighted the urgency of making buildings more sustainable to tackle climate change. Digital screens, which enable us to engage occupiers with visualisations of a building’s performance in real time, including air quality, energy and water usage, are becoming an increasingly important tool for boosting building sustainability. After all, the amount of time and money landlords spend on committing to a sustainable workplace is wasted if they don’t communicate this effectively to staff.
This lack of communication is important because according to a study of 49 buildings conducted by Innovate UK, average total carbon emissions were found to be 3.8 times higher in operation relative to the buildings’ design estimates. So, while the environmental standard of new and refurbished buildings has increased in recent years, this has not corresponded to an equivalent rise in actual environmental performance.
This performance gap was found to be caused by several factors, including over-complicated building management systems and facilities that alienate users, a lack of education on the most efficient means of use, occupiers not buying in to sustainable practices and simple human preference and behaviours. The key therefore to lasting environmental success is communicating effectively with occupiers so that they can make the necessary behavioural changes to improve sustainability.
Domestic digital smart meters have made people aware of their home energy consumption and they can see almost immediately the benefits of turning down the thermostat a notch in the winter months. Similarly, proptech can help raise awareness of energy consumption in the workplace. And it’s not only energy. Workplace water consumption and recycling rates can also be displayed. Furthermore, with growing concern from occupiers about workplace wellness, air quality indicators such as levels of particulates or carbon dioxide can also be communicated.
Awareness and having the data available is the first step in behavioural change. Smart buildings combined with proptech provide a fantastic opportunity to drive awareness with real time data but communicating this information to tenants is crucial. After all, while great expense may have gone into purchasing these smart systems and incorporating sustainability features, what’s the point if you are failing to communicate and educate your occupiers around its importance?
The best way to do this is through a multi-pronged approach, incorporating digital signage. While workplace apps and Intranets rely on active input from the end user, digital screens located throughout offices offer guaranteed eyeballs and engagement, allowing landlords and building managers to communicate with their tenants and convey the benefits of what proptech can offer.
But, unfortunately, most people’s experience of digital screens is a poor one: peek into most office receptions up and down the country and you see a familiar sight: state-of-the-art digital screens displaying stock imagery such as pretty landscapes, perpetually on repeat. All such a waste of an opportunity to engage and inform those working in these buildings as well as clients and visitors.
In contrast, we have installed and are managing digital screens across five state-of-the art office buildings in AshbyCapital’s portfolio, from The Kensington Building in London to The Future Works in Slough. These screens display a varied deck of occupier-centric content, including breaking news, travel updates and building events, while dedicated sustainability dashboards display real-time energy and water consumption from sensors in the buildings, air quality and temperature, helping to raise awareness of environmental factors and encourage tenants into more sustainable behaviours.
There is much more. Building managers can communicate directly with tenants about measures being introduced to improve a building’s sustainability credentials. For example, the introduction of more energy efficient ventilation, PDR lighting sensors, new recycling arrangements and the use of renewable energy, either directly or through an energy provider. There is also an opportunity to educate, informing tenants about the cost of energy per additional degree of heating in winter and cooling in summer, as well as the resultant extra carbon emissions generated or saved.
Improving the sustainability of the built environment requires a partnership between landlords, managers and occupiers, and like any partnership this needs good communication to work. Digital screens alongside company apps and an Intranet can greatly help facilitate this process, helping businesses to put their mouth where their money is.
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