Sensor technology

Occupancy sensing technologies have a long history of helping organizations save money and reduce energy use and carbon emissions. The most established application is for lighting when occupancy sensors turn off lights when no one is present. Many building automation systems (BAS) can maintain a suitable level of comfort and efficiency with less power when they have accurate information on whether people are present in the served area, and how many. According to a new report from Guidehouse Insights, the occupancy sensing market is expected to grow from $6.6 billion in 2024 to $10.9 billion in 2033, at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 5.7 percent.

Applications that are growing include using occupancy data to improve space planning for desk hoteling and to help buildings optimize maintenance schedules, such as cleaning restrooms based on actual usage. Also, accurate occupancy information is central to the performance of building access and security systems that allow, restrict, and monitor employee access in a facility's sensitive areas.

"The sensors' primary application is to avoid operating lights in vacant spaces, but they can have many other use cases in building, where they could help avoid unnecessary costs without affecting tenant comfort," says Willliam Hughes, principal research analyst with Guidehouse Insights. "The revenue associated with these use cases is experiencing modest growth, but the sensors still face several barriers to faster adoption."

Tying occupancy data from the various BAS into a consolidated occupancy system would enable a building to synchronize its BAS to offer tenants better service through the building management system (BMS). Such coordination could lower energy consumed by the building, and the respective BAS could coordinate to anticipate requests for service. This scenario is possible today, but rarely implemented, as most occupancy systems are used in BAS siloes. Unfortunately, this slow growth seems likely to continue for the time being, according to the report.

Check out this Facility Cleaning Decisions article showcasing an amusement part, Kentucky Kingdom, that implemented the sensor technology to better prioritize restroom cleaning.