AI to drive energy savings in commercial buildings

Autonomous AI technology provider BrainBox AI has announced a partnership with data intelligence provider Skyfii.

BrainBox AI technology combines deep learning, cloud-based computing and autonomous decision-making to support a 24/7 self-operating building. The solution enables HVAC to operate autonomously in real time, generating a 25% reduction in total energy costs, a 20–40% reduction in carbon footprint and a 60% increase in occupant comfort.

Skyfii’s data intelligence helps building owners understand the behaviour patterns of occupants and visitors.

“Now more than ever, building owners and operators are looking for ways to improve the performance and efficiency of their buildings,” said John Rankin, Chief Operating Officer at Skyfii.

“By utilising Skyfii’s OccupancyNow tool and the direct integration with BrainBox AI, building owners can now measure occupancy of their building in real time to drive greater efficiency and reductions in energy consumption,” he said.

BrainBox AI’s drives decision-making based on data coming from existing building systems (eg, BMS, access control systems) and third-party sources (eg, weather, utility tariff structures, occupancy).

“Artificial intelligence is powered by high-quality data; the more data an engine such as BrainBox AI’s can receive, the more precise it will be in the actions it takes to save energy and improve occupant comfort,” said Jean-Simon Venne, Chief Technology Officer and co-founder at BrainBox AI.

“The addition of Skyfii’s historical and real-time occupancy data is expected to improve the results generated by our technology.”

The first beneficiary of this partnership will be AMP Capital, who announced in October 2020 the deployment of BrainBox AI’s artificial intelligence technology throughout its entire real estate portfolio. Having already deployed Skyfii’s visitor intelligence tools in a handful of its retail facilities, AMP Capital  will be leveraging its investment by utilising this occupancy tracking and pattern data to improve the decision-making made by the BrainBox AI engine, which is expected to lead to higher energy savings and a reduced carbon footprint. AMP Capital’s Macquarie Centre, a 135,000 m² shopping mall located in north-west Sydney, will be the first site to benefit from the cutting-age technology partnership.

“AMP Capital is consistently looking to improve our customer experience, reduce building operating costs and decrease emissions across our portfolio,” said Daniel Lepore, Head of Asset Technology at AMP Capital.

“The out-of-the-box integration between Skyfii and BrainBox AI forms part of our PropTech ecosystem, allowing us to drive those efforts further, and we’re proud to be the first portfolio in the Asia–Pacific region to benefit.”

Image caption: Dan Lepore, Ben Gill and John Rankin.