Johnson Controls, a specialist for smart, healthy and sustainable buildings, has announced results of independent surveys of 800+ building decision makers showing a clear shift to increased investment in healthy building trends and technologies
“At the centre of a vision for a healthy world must be healthy buildings, and that means delivering on the most critical elements to serve people, places and planet,” said George Oliver, CEO of Johnson Controls. “Our OpenBlue technologies reinvent the building landscape, creating dynamic smart facilities that help businesses meet their sustainability commitments, while delivering healthy places, enriched experiences and cost savings. Johnson Controls leads the industry in translating new building technology capabilities into game-changing solutions that deliver on our focus of people, places and planet.”
The surveys confirmed the need is greater than ever, with 90% of responding firms having dedicated resources to healthy buildings initiatives.
“There is a huge demand in the markets today for building solutions that can prioritise the health and wellness of occupants, drive cost savings and contribute to the regions’ sustainable development goals,” said Rolando Furlong, vice-president and general manager at Johnson Controls Middle East and Africa.
“We believe that with our comprehensive portfolio of solutions we can meet these expectations, drive operational value and contribute to the regions vision for sustainability,” said Rolando.
The 2020 pandemic showed that few customers were able to reduce building operating costs despite lower occupancy, highlighting the need for technologies to deliver flexibility.
“Energy use should be dramatically lower when occupancy is low, but surprisingly less than one in ten building operators were able to reduce energy use more than 20%,” said Michael Ellis, executive vice-president and chief customer and digital officer at Johnson Controls. “At a time when companies are aggressively pursuing energy and cost savings, customers need and want solutions that help them do better, while increasing the health profile of those buildings. Johnson Controls OpenBlue technologies deliver a unique, game-changing capability to solve for healthy places, while simultaneously serving sustainability goals.”
The survey of facilities operators showed a range of specific investment priorities to meet goals for healthy people, healthy places and a healthy planet:
Healthy people
Businesses are increasingly committed to employee health and wellness as a driver of high performing teams. The studies show an increase in investments by organisations toward wellness, clean air and peace of mind. About 80% of respondents stated that protecting the health and safety of building occupants during the COVID pandemic and afterward is very or extremely important.
New factors are being included in this mix such as temperature control, disinfection, ventilation and air filtration, which all require well maintained systems and equipment, enhanced through intelligent sensors and control software. The realities of the COVID pandemic have increased the potential benefit of these technologies and for contactless access and contact tracing. These capabilities can help increase overall building security through enhanced tracking of building guest and occupant access, flow and location, while maintaining trust. Johnson Controls delivers solutions for all of these needs and in support of broader wellness for people in shared spaces.
Healthy places
Finding cost savings and making fast and informed decisions, supported by data, is a critical part of facility operations. In the Johnson Controls independent studies, 80% of facility executives stated that increasing flexibility to quickly respond to emergencies is a top driver for investment in technologies such as flexible facility monitoring and healthy air strategies.
The spaces in which people work, shop, entertain and live become more inviting, more efficient and less expensive to operate over time. Space optimisation, capital planning and increasing the uptime and lifetime of assets all support operational performance and lead to cost savings and increased revenue opportunities for building operators. Johnson Controls OpenBlue, a complete suite of connected solutions and services, leverages digital integration to optimise buildings and assets’ performance.
Healthy planet
Improvements in energy efficiency, renewable energy and smart building technology are becoming more critical each year. In the studies, 76% of facility executives stated that energy cost savings are a top driver for investment. These investments also influence corporate sustainability rankings, an important metric for attracting and retaining investors, employees and customers.
Buildings are responsible for about 40% of the planet’s total energy consumption and 36% of greenhouse gas emissions from energy use. But only one per cent of buildings undergo energy efficient renovation every year. Effective action is crucial in aligning to increased regulation, decreasing energy consumption and increasing sustainability. The studies revealed that 57% of organisations plan to achieve net zero carbon or positive energy status in at least one facility in the next ten years for the health of the planet.
Through ongoing efforts to create more healthy buildings, Johnson Controls has implemented more than 3,000 energy-savings performance contracting projects in North America alone. The result has been reductions of more than 29 million metric tonnes of carbon emissions from customer facilities and savings of US$6bn in energy and operating costs driven by a comprehensive suite of product and technology solutions. In fiscal year 2019 almost half of Johnson Controls revenue came from products and services that reduce energy use and improve sustainability. Johnson Controls helps building owners and occupants make efficient, productive decisions in support of healthy people, healthy places and a healthy planet.
