AI at your service - loving or loathing it?

Whether we love it or not, Artificial Intelligence (AI) technology is already playing a huge part in everyday life as well as in the building industry, but there is still work to do if the technology’s full potential for improving indoor environments and ensuring a perfect indoor climate is to be fully utilised. My name is Joshua Emerson, Marketing & Sales Development Director at Swegon, and in this blog I will elaborate on how AI can be a unique tool in the building sector.

AI is described as the process that allows a computer to act and respond “almost as if it was a human”. That ‘almost’ is important because the ideal scenario is that machine learning does not replace humans but supports them, making them more efficient and productive.

AI tools feed on data and learn to identify patterns to help them make predictions, solve problems, and learn from their own mistakes. They also need algorithms, which are the ‘rules’ by which they are governed and must be followed in the right order to complete a task. Those algorithms are embedded in our daily lives and AI is creating astonishing possibilities because of the speed with which it analyses and uses information. Of course, with any such development there is bound to be concern and negativity – that’s natural – and the wider construction industry is in a bit of a quandary.

Not all dare to welcome and embrace AI

Just under half of 950 industry managers surveyed by the recruitment specialist Hays thought AI should be embraced, but 42% were not so sure and the other 11% were positively alarmed at the prospect.

Many acknowledged that AI tools like Jasper and ChatGPT could deliver cost savings (41%) and improve productivity (28%) but only 15% of construction and property firms told Hays they were allowing staff to use AI tools unmonitored. In fact, nearly a quarter (22%) said they would ban them on security grounds.

This shows there is still work to do to fully embed digital thinking into various supply chains, even though major strides have been made in recent times. Evidence of progress in the building sector is all around with the launch of multiple AI tools aimed directly at this market. Some work with BIM models to extract product information, generate 2D images and link other data sources, as a few examples. Others read and ‘understand’ contracts and documents, from tender requests to subcontract agreements and make intelligent comparisons and risk analyses to help contractors make crucial financial decisions.

AI-driven analysis also allows engineers to rapidly test a series of theoretical scenarios in the virtual world before making any adjustments or retrofits in reality. This reduces risk, cuts upfront costs, and makes for far better outcomes for the end customer. Engineers have the freedom to test and fail before settling on the perfect solution.

For retrofit projects, a building’s current energy performance can be closely analysed via thousands of data points, this allows managers to identify the greatest sources of energy consumption and consider a wide range of options for improving performance. As heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) together with lighting are responsible for upwards of 50% of energy use in a typical commercial building, this AI generated insight can really make a difference. In fact, the Capgemini Research Institute estimates that this kind of development means AI could reduce global greenhouse gas emissions by 16% by 2030 and support organisations’ and governments’ work towards their net zero goals.

Why are we not ready?

Many firms still don’t believe they have the right skills to exploit AI and the industry remains comparatively immature when it comes to adopting digital techniques. Even where building operators collect data, not enough time is spent analysing it and using it to support decision making and building management strategies.

BESA President Claire Curran alluded to this in her first presidential speech. She pointed out that businesses were being digitalised “whether they like it or not” and urged the industry to embrace the way communication and information capture was changing.

“Artificial intelligence is here. You can either fight it and get left behind or get on board and be a thought leader. AI is out and is not going back in its box,” said Curran.

She pointed out that tight profit margins and skills shortages made it more important than ever that building services firms operates “effectively and efficiently”. The kind of analysis on offer from AI could finally crack the productivity problem the building and property management sectors have been struggling with for decades. AI can speed up many of the repetitive tasks currently carried out by humans and more efficient use of data can support to streamline workflows and improve project delivery. All in all, AI can free up more people to focus on the value-added work.

Claire Curran further added that the “digital takeover” would require “completely new skills” but was also “an amazing opportunity to reach out to the new generation and state our case for being their career of choice” so they could contribute “to a better, greener future”.

So where are we in this and where are we heading?

At Swegon, our response to this digital transformation is to embrace it and we have developed a range of building related services making use of what AI can offer. Harnessing these digital advances to AI technology means analysis can be carried out at blistering speeds and insights can be gained like never before. AI also allows HVAC controls to ‘learn’ about changes in usage, alterations in the local weather, etc. Meaning, systems can automatically recalibrate without the need for human intervention.

Our building services are gathered under the name of Swegon INSIDE and they are, in short, developed for care, comfort and control of the HVAC units in one or more buildings, the indoor climate and the people inside.

AI allows us to monitor and control the indoor climate in ways we would never have imagined possible just a few years ago. The speed with which the technology is advancing and the improvements to sensor technology and connectivity put detailed data about temperatures, sound levels and humidity at our fingertips in ‘real time’. This has significant health implications as we can dive deeply and quickly into numerous factors impacting the indoor climate and make quick, but highly informed, decisions about the best measures to ensure a healthy and comfortable indoor climate.

The various analytics tools in Swegon INSIDE help building management in line with operational targets and supports facilities management strategies with augmented data for reporting, cost analysis and to drive sustainability. Maintenance can also be better planned, and operational issues solved before the indoor climate is affected. Energy efficiency can be noticeably improved as recommendations are made based on historic, current, and AI-forecasted information.

In many aspects, our Swegon INSIDE services build on artificial intelligence technology and helps us to further deliver on our promise of creating healthy and comfortable indoor environments for people to be at their best.