Internet of Things for Facility Management: Strategies of Service Optimization and Innovation

Buildings generate streams of information, but data alone do not make a facility smarter. In Internet of Things for Facility Management, Nazly Atta considers how sensors, connected devices and Big Data can be organized into practical ways of improving building services. The emphasis is on turning information into decisions, operational responses and new models for delivering facility management.

Across its theoretical discussion and applied research, the book gives facility-management stakeholders a framework for thinking through IoT integration—from what should be measured to how organizations, services and responsibilities may need to change.

From building data to better-informed services

The opening chapters establish the context: traditional information management in facility management, the idea of “smartness” in the built environment, and the shifts toward real-time data, integrated networks, adaptive systems and more information-intensive work. Atta also examines IoT technologies, Big Data and information platforms as tools for collecting and managing building-related information.

Make sensing useful to facility managers

A central concern is how to connect building conditions and operational needs with appropriate information sources. The book proposes a taxonomy of facility-management information and a parameter-and-sensor matrix to help stakeholders make sense of a varied technology landscape. Its “Sensing and Responding” models link the collection of information to possible organizational and service responses.

Strategies across everyday building operations

The proposed IoT-based approaches address remote monitoring, fault detection and diagnosis, condition-based management, and predictive and prescriptive strategies. Atta considers their potential application to maintenance, cleaning, waste, space, energy and utilities management—areas where better visibility into actual conditions can inform how services are planned and delivered.

People, partnerships and the service model

The discussion extends beyond devices and platforms. A case study of the eFM headquarters explores workplace management, while the final chapters consider supply-chain configurations, service sourcing, information responsibility and ownership, and the skills facility managers may need when working with IT providers.

Who may find this book relevant?

This research-led title is intended for facility-management stakeholders, including real-estate owners, service providers and suppliers, as well as readers interested in smart buildings and the organizational implications of IoT. It is especially relevant to those considering how connected information could influence both building operations and the agreements and capabilities that support them.