THINK PIECES ARCHIVE

A New Year of Healthy Spaces and Coffee, Too

Happy New Year! At this time of year, we want to express our gratitude for our community of clients, partners, friends and neighbors. Because of you, we’ve emerged more focused, stronger, and healthier going into 2023. Making places better remains our goal. Spatial intelligence resonates more than ever as clients seek to redefine their organization’s new relationship to people, place, and the environment coming out of the pandemic. To get started, come see how we are approa

Signing on to Carbon Neutrality

In a recent article in dezeen, they cover how a number of large A&E firms are signing on to a commitment to reduce Carbon Emissions by 2050. Among those firms who have signed on are world-renowned firms such as ARUP, SOM and now Buro Happold, the British professional services firm working in over 24 locations globally. Each of these firms will focus on how they can reduce embodied carbon (the carbon emitted through the process of material extraction, delivery and use in const

Smarter Buildings: How To Tackle Health And Energy Saving

A recent article of the AAP News reveals the different challenges of the smarter buildings of the future. Brian Turner, chief executive at Buildings IOT affirms that the returning back to workspaces needs to ensure: healthy spaces that guarantee adequate ventilation, temperature, and humidity conditions. “Think about any kind of space that's going to house humans, it's temperature, humidity, and air flow. Those three things have been shown to contribute to lower transmissio

How Sensors Have Helped to Solve Environmental Problems

The Environmental Defense Fund published a recent article on the important role that sensors have in the protection of the environment. The main idea is that for humans, it’s hard to plan ahead or respond to threats that cannot be seen, heard or touched: for example, air or water pollution, toxic chemicals in products we use and others… Sensors are making this ‘invisible’, ‘visible’. Let’s review 8 ways in which sensors can help solve environmental problems: Sensors can help

Approach to Design and Infrared Light Sources That can Revolutionize Molecular Sensing Technology

Science Daily published an article that talks about how Vanderbilt and Penn State engineers have developed a new approach to design and fabricated thin-film light sources. The main objective of this project is to develop inexpensive and efficient designer infrared light sources that can revolutionize molecular sensing technologies. The applications that this could have includes “free-space communications, infrared beacons for search and rescue, molecular sensors for monitorin

UK: How sensors and AI are monitoring social care patients

Another example on how technology can be in service of health and wellbeing. BBC Technology published an article that explains how in Dorset, more than one hundred people that need social care are monitored by artificial intelligence as part of a three month pilot program. “Sensors installed in homes will track behaviour and electricity usage which the AI will analyse to spot potential health problems. Lilli, the UK-based firm behind the technology, says it could cut costs an

Healthy Environments and Climate Goals

Dan Diehl from Remi Network shared an article that explains how to provide healthy environments and, at the same time, meet climate goals. With the new variants of COVID 19, such as Delta, tenants and occupants have begun to worry again. Building owners and occupants need to prioritize healthy indoor air quality, especially ventilation systems. “At the same time, the U.S. and other leading industrial countries are setting aggressive carbon-reduction goals that push building o

Preparing the future of work with PropTech

Forbes released a recent article that analyzes how PropTech is key when it comes to the modernization of future workspaces. Property technology market started to rise after the pandemic, with it, also the proptech boom is emerging. Major commercial real estate brokerages (JLL and Cushman & Wakefield) “have taken a bet of confidence in the space by backing proptech venture capital funds”. ProTech is developing solutions for new concerns regarding office spaces triggered by the

Organic-Inorganic Gas Sensors for Better Air Quality

Science Daily released an article that shares a study made by Incheon National University that analyses how climate change and air pollution is triggering the necessity of efficient, low-cost and portable gas sensors that can detect toxic gases in real time. “Organic polymer-based sensors have the potential to fulfill all these requirements, but they're not durable at room temperature”. Experts now affirm that this durability problem can be resolved with “a hybrid organic-ino

Experts Say That the Future of Real Estate is Healthier Thanks to PropTech

From US$3 billion in 2014 to US$18 billion in 2018, fundraising in the proptech, or property technology, industry has dramatically increased. Experts affirm that investors believe that proptech will have a significant influence on the industry for the coming years. Investing News Network released an interesting article about this in it's latest publication. PropTech is a concept used to explain how technology and innovative ideas can transform property management strategies a

How to Increase Office Occupancy with Sensors and Space Design?

EIN PressWire recently posted about a collaboration between Disruptive Technologies, HeadsUp and the global coworking provider Spaces. The three companies are monitoring occupancy and looking to implement different strategies in order to maximize office space use. Spaces focus on the creation of creative office environments for innovators, forward thinkers and game-changers that look for comfortable and stylish spaces to work, meet and collaborate. But it has had a hard time

Benefits of the Integration of Spatial Intelligence in Warehouses

The pandemic has accelerated the integration of spatial intelligence solutions in order to achieve the optimization of operations in industries. MH&L Magazine published an article that analyzes the benefits of integrating this technology in warehouses. Some of the key points discussed were “real-time operational visibility, enabling warehouse operators to increase worker productivity, asset utilization and safety”. The increase of e-commerce during the pandemic has also trigg

Green building goals can be possible with smart building technology

Traditional operations and practices for buildings are long gone. The priority in terms of space right now relies on the provision of better solutions for energy efficiency and occupants wellness. Intelligent CIO published a recent article that analyzes 3 ways in which smart buildings technology can create sustainable environments. “One way building operations are changing is by using smart building technology. Using Power-over-Ethernet (PoE) and the Internet of Things (IoT)

Digital Twin: A valuable asset for building’s management and life cycle assessment.

Building, Design and Construction Magazine published a recent article that analyses a study conducted by Ernst & Young Global Limited (EY) called Digital Twin: the Age of Aquarius in construction and real estate. The piece illustrates how advancements in artificial intelligence, sensor technology and machine learning are making digital twin technologies a key element for the development and management of new and existing buildings. “The paper outlines the technology’s value

Building Innovation Dilemma: Can the Building Industry Handle Innovation?

(Image courtesy of Katerra) CONTEXT: Case One: This week Katerra, who began as an innovator of a novel steel frame system and transformed into a vertical building industry integrator, collapse leaving dozens (?) of projects and an assembly of 20 formally independent companies and 3,000+ employees stranded. Case Two: In 2019, in ye ‘ole days pre-covid, WeWork went from global real estate super-nova to a limp basket of cold in a matter of weeks (provide scale of collapse). In a

Smart Cities: intelligence vision sensors, key technology to improve traffic and pedestrian safety

Technology is getting increasingly important for human and urban development. According to Smart Cities World Platform, Rome’s municipality, in Italy, is conducting three different trials to diminish pollution and risk in the city by incorporating artificial intelligence and sensors into its city streets. “Sony Europe IMX500 image sensors with artificial intelligence (AI) processing functionality are at the core of three trials being run by Greentech specialist Envision in th

Google redefines offices for the future: an innovative approach to how future work should be

How after-covid offices should be? Workplaces are definitely going to change, now more than ever, since an important part of the workforce works remotely. More outdoor areas, new hybrid conference rooms for remote and present workers, robots setting up spaces, adaptive furniture that can be easily set, moved or replaced in minutes; are some ideas that Google has developed. “In 2018, Google’s real estate group began to consider what it could do differently. It turned to the co

Future is Now: Health Aware Buildings

A recent article in Architecture and Design looks at how technology is adapting in buildings for a post-COVID future. From contactless designs to occupancy sensing to measurement of various health factors, technology is helping buildings reopen. The key considerations for designers to create safer spaces via technology are adaptability, monitoring and control through the collection of data and the use of sensors. “With motorised doors and intelligent lighting and HVAC, it wou

Sensors and customization will drive the return to the office

A recent article in Architecture Daily looks at how sensors and comfort surveys will play an important role in bringing people back to the office. “After a year of living in spaces where they have a high level of personal control, returning building occupants will likely bristle at the standard one-size-fits-all method of building operations. Occupants will desire their offices to accommodate their comfort needs, and building owners will have to provide safe and comfortable s

How Smart Environments Will Take Shape Post COVID-19

A recent article in IOT World Today looks at how COVID-19 is refocusing the role of smart technologies from energy savings to health issues such as social distancing validation and air quality. From the report: “...we are now seeing an increased focus on the use of smart environmental sensors that track noise, light, CO2, particulates and volatile organic compounds in the workplace.” At MKThink we're developing creative processes and tools to develop intelligent places that a