Layout, number of floors, total expected occupancy, and available land along with zoning laws and climate can affect the ROI of various systems. For example, if the facility is designed for a northern climate and near a freeway, one might take into consideration placement of the air handling unit(s). Indoor placement might at first seem more expensive, but when you consider the potentially doubling of the asset life, and the fact that there is a stronger potential for proper maintenance indoors versus rooftop, the cost may actually be hundreds of thousands of dollars less.
Performance in an intelligent building allows selection of light levels based on external light, time of day and occupancy. Sweeping blackouts can be planned to make sure no lights are left on from the cleaning crews at night. Late night workers can be sensored using passive RFID as they check in, and lights can go on and off as they walk to their workstation. Individual comfort levels can be set and monitored, the skin of the building could be storing electricity for night time use, or make ice at night for daytime cooling.
Intelligent Buildings require sophisticated monitoring systems, and those systems require trained people to properly maintain them. As usage or population of the facility changes, the systems must be balanced and tuned to accommodate these changes. Measurement and management of every aspect of the systems serving the facility from Chillers, boilers, air handling units, lighting, security, and all life safety equipment must be maintained to maximize life cycle and regulatory requirements. The single most dangerous link in the success or failure of building performance is the engineer who wants to tweak the systems without the knowledge and documentation to support the change. An integrated maintenance management system will educate, document and guide the life-cycle of an intelligent facility through decades of occupancy, yielding optimal ROI for all aspects of the intelligent facility.
Sustainability through integrated maintenance management systems will provide consistent information on what to do and when. No longer is everything retained in the head of the building engineer. Integration allows a smooth flow of information and documentation to assure optimal operating conditions. Intelligent buildings with maintenance integration use less labor than traditional facilities yielding optimal ROI. Green becomes a measurable trait of the facility. Documentation can actually be used to avert over or under maintaining and legal support should issues arise.
In summary, high performance intelligent buildings require a matching level of system integration to support the operational and life-cycle management of the investment for optimal labor costs, energy and tenant comfort.