The foundation of Smart Buildings: fibre cabling and artificial intelligence

23 aprīlis 2025
6 Minutes read

Raksta autors

Brother Nordics
Global Technology Solutions and Services Provider
Brother Nordic A/S

23 aprīlis 2025
6 Minutes read

Smart buildings are at the cutting edge when it comes to innovation within commercial real estate relying on interconnected devices to optimise efficiency, sustainability and user comfort.

What is meant by Smart Buildings?

Smart buildings are at the cutting edge when it comes to innovation within commercial real estate relying on interconnected devices to optimise efficiency, sustainability and user comfort. The continued development of artificial intelligence (AI) is driving this innovation even further, providing opportunities for smart buildings to become even smarter.

Smart buildings already process a large amount of data from IoT devices – meaning hardware such as sensors that connect wirelessly to a network and transmit data - but this is only set to increase in the near future. Research from Memoori predicts that the number of IoT devices used in smart buildings worldwide is set to reach over 3 billion by 2028.¹

Yet currently, there is a significant amount of smart building data that is never used. This ‘dark data’ is information that is routinely gathered during normal business but never interacted with. Estimates vary on the amount of ‘dark data’ there is by industry, ranging from 40%-90%.²

This brings with it the chance to make real strides in boosting efficiency.

What is useful about smart buildings cabling?

With so much data to process, its potential means nothing if smart buildings don’t have a reliable system in place to facilitate communication between the various devices and systems that make these buildings smart. This is where quality cabling, and labelling comes in.

Cables are the nervous system for smart buildings. They make up the sophisticated network structure that is needed right throughout the building, connecting devices like sensors, control panels and servers.

Having the right tools and labelling solutions is a critical part of any network installation, especially for those who now find themselves installing the nervous system of any smart building.

With this digital infrastructure, developers will want it to be future-proofed as while the lifespan of buildings is measured in decades, the shelf-life of IT hardware is much shorter. That means cabling installations today are not only specified to be able to handle the current crop of smart technology, but to provide a platform that’s ready to support tech that’s 10 years down the line.

In warehouses, equipment can be tracked to help effectively manage inventories, predict when there will be surges in demand and improve travel routes to help optimise the supply chain.

In offices, sensor data can be analysed by AI to predict traffic and occupancy in the building. This can then be worked into plans for things like energy-efficient cleaning schedules, so they are not planned during busy periods. Similarly, IT can be tasked with doing routine check-ups on people’s devices when they’re away from their desks. This can make sure that resources are being used efficiently. AI-powered smart buildings will have the ability to continue learning from this data, and finding new ways to make workplaces more productive.

But this isn’t only about making things more energy or cost efficient, it’s also about making the workplace more comfortable for employees. Intelligent climate control systems can learn from the preferences of workers, which allows smart buildings to then create a workspace that is suits their needs for comfort.

Electricans network label printed using Brother PTE560BTVP infront of data cables

Operationally sustainable and self-sufficient smart buildings

Systems like this can also bring huge sustainability benefits. This is one area that should be a priority for commercial real estate, with it being responsible for nearly 40% of global carbon emissions.³

But take the Edge Building in Amsterdam, which is home to professional services firm Deloitte. It is a smart building that has a network of 28,000 sensors, which monitor temperature, light, humidity and the presence of people in the building. It then uses this data to inform energy management in real time.

This led to it being described as the most sustainable office building in the world after being handed the best ever energy efficiency rating according to the Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Methodology (BREEAM). It achieved a score of 98.36 percent.

The predictive capabilities of AI creates the potential for this to be taken even further, as it can process even more data and shine a bigger light on building operations and how energy consumption can be better managed.

Efficient and seamless installations in smart buildings

As modern commercial buildings increasingly begin to resemble large computers with roofs – and that applies across a wide range of sectors as facilities such as hospitals and schools are also adopting ever more sophisticated data infrastructure – the complexity of a typical network installation has increased dramatically.

To help smart buildings keep up with these technology developments, it’s important for network installers to build systems that are flexible and scalable. This can involve adding extra switch ports and routers to help with future growth or having the capability to increase bandwidth as needed. Additions like these can go a long way in allowing for seamless integration of new technologies, ensuring a smart building remains at the cutting edge no matter how the technology landscape changes.

As a heavily regulated area, it also goes without saying that building-wide data cable networks need to be accurately labelled to ensure safety and compliance. But, as the size and sophistication of systems continues to grow, installers that aren’t using the smartest and most efficient labelling solutions could find labelling becoming an efficiency bottleneck.

It’s vital for installers to be aware of the benefits of labelling solutions that can integrate seamlessly with database systems, create large runs of sequential labels on site, and deliver labels that leave a professional finish and will remain legible for the life of the project.

That’s why Brother has developed a network labelling solution – built around the PT-E560BTVP label printer and Pro Label Tool App – optimised to meet the growing sophistication of modern data cable installations. It does this thanks to a wide range of features including instant access to pre-loaded industry templates, which increases efficiency while creating, saving and sharing custom branded labels. Compatibility with Brother’s iLink&Label app also provides on-the-job workflow solutions for larger network labelling projects.

For those looking to carry out a network installation, consider network labelling solutions from Brother to make sure you’re getting the right tools for the job.