The Tools and Trends Shaping Environmental Monitoring Technology
Commercial real estate is a huge investment. Before buying or building a property, you consider the market, tenant preferences, and the environment. Setting up a large manufacturing plant on swampland is probably a bad idea. But you might not consider how the internal environment affects your investment.
Indoor air pollution, bad water quality, and other factors lower your curb appeal, making it harder to attract tenants. Interior issues can also cost you money. In the worst-case scenario, you have to stop operations as you make costly repairs. Imagine having to shut down a school for weeks to remove mold and remodel the interior.
Environmental monitoring technology lets you keep tabs on air quality, water quality, and other indicators of building health. You can detect and manage problems before they become time-consuming and expensive.
What Are the Core Components of Environmental Monitoring?
Your environmental monitoring system should include:
Sensors: Air quality and water quality sensors constantly measure physical, chemical, and biological conditions such as temperature, volatile organic compound (VOC) levels, humidity, CO2 levels, and more.
Connectivity: Environmental monitoring technology collects data from the sensors through a wired or wireless connection, including Wi-Fi, cellular data, and LoRaWAN (radio waves)
Analytics: Once the system has compiled the data, it runs reports, sends alerts, and creates dashboards so you can monitor your building in real time.
Cloud or edge computing: Newer smart building technology works through a cloud-based platform so you can access your data anywhere instead of waiting to access a physical server onsite.
What Are the 5 Types of Environmental Monitoring?
To gain a full analysis of your building at all times, monitor conditions in these categories:
Air quality monitoring: Indoor air quality (IAQ) monitoring involves collecting data on indoor air pollutants such as chemicals, dust, mold, organic particles, and other gases.
Water leak and humidity monitoring: These environmental sensing and monitoring technologies measure relative humidity levels. Place water leak detection sensors under sinks, toilets, and appliances to receive alerts when the system finds a small leak.
Temperature and thermal monitoring: Often used to control temperature, these monitors measure the temperature, relative humidity, and other conditions that impact people’s comfort.
Gas and chemical detection: Most buildings have gas sensors to detect smoke and carbon monoxide. A commercial building may also include chemical detectors, particularly in areas used for storing and handling hazardous materials.
Noise and vibration monitoring: These systems use sensors to collect data on vibration levels in your building or in individual machines. They help you detect potential machine failures early and help prevent structural damage to your buildings.
How Does IoT Power Environmental Monitoring Systems?
Environmental monitoring and technologies using Internet of Things (IoT) technology collect and transmit data in real time. In these systems, the sensors are connected to the internet, and they continually monitor your systems and talk to your app.
By placing sensors throughout your building, you have a complete environmental picture in the palm of your hand. Many of these systems are cloud-based, meaning you can monitor air quality, water quality, and other systems offsite — and use those alerts as an excuse to escape boring party conversations.
Key Use Cases in Commercial Buildings
As a building manager in the future, your environmental monitoring technology coordinates with SMART building systems such as automated lighting or HVAC controls. Schools and other commercial buildings with vulnerable tenants often use these systems for mold detection so they can fix the problem early and keep everyone safe.
Leak detection monitoring is helpful in multi-family units. Water sensors can detect small leaks and send you alerts so you can fix them and say goodbye to warped floorboards and drywall installation. Instead of dealing with a costly flood, you get an instant alert for an easy fix.
In commercial real estate, reports created by environmental monitoring software are essential for compliance with green certifications, healthy building certifications, and other regulations. Water and energy management are key components of these certifications. For businesses dedicated to sustainability, these reports are essential for showcasing environmental performance through sustainable engineering.
What Is the Role of Technology in Environmental Monitoring?
SMART tech to improve IAQ is evolving, and these improvements are making environmental monitoring more accurate. Edge AI, which works with local devices, can detect deviations sooner without cloud delays.
AI also evaluates high volumes of data for predictive analytics and environmental forecasting. SMART building technology can automatically adjust HVAC systems based on historical data to enhance energy efficiency.
Plug-and-play systems using wireless sensor networks make it easier to deploy monitoring tech in older buildings. Many of these modular platforms are flexible and easier to configure based on risk profile or facility size.
How To Choose an Environmental Monitoring System
The environmental monitoring technologies market is large, with many options. Narrow down solutions by prioritizing your biggest pain point. Do you need to detect mold or manage indoor air quality? Check the system’s VOC sensor functionality. Do you have a tenant such as a museum or art gallery that needs precision humidity control? Or are you just interested in cutting back your energy use?
Once you’ve decided which factors to monitor, assess your existing systems. If you want your environmental monitoring technology to trigger your HVAC and other systems, look for a platform that integrates with the software you’re already using. Check for network requirements and other factors that might impact deployment.
Look for a system that is scalable and customizable. If you plan on expanding your building or buying more properties, look for a flexible solution. Finally, determine if you want a cloud-based system or one that works with a standard onsite server. A cloud-based system will give you real-time data on any device connected to the network, regardless of whether or not you're onsite.
Attune Gives You Eyes on Building Health — in Real Time
Attune offers a modular IoT platform with plug-and-play sensors. Our engineers will meet with you to assess your goals and needs and customize a monitoring solution for you. We offer real-time visibility into IAQ, energy, water, and HVAC.
Building owners and managers are using our system to improve indoor environments in schools, multi-family buildings, and other commercial real estate properties. Our clients use our platform to identify and mitigate risks, reduce their energy consumption, and provide reports for ESG compliance.
We’re ready to help you meet your environmental quality goals. Contact us today to learn more.
