Uncertainty related to occupancy, and inconsistent footfalls have been challenging both outdoor and indoor commercial/workspaces in the new normal. The need for social distancing and limiting the number of people who could occupy a given space at a given time has become important in the current setup. Occupancy management for buildings, therefore, is becoming a key priority for modern workplaces.

As employees get back to work from the office amid social distancing and strict compliance with the mandated health and safety protocols, organizations have started adopting smart occupancy management. It is being endorsed to improve everyday operations and achieve long-term goals. Organizations have turned to practical and economical alternatives to control occupancy levels in crowded settings. By providing a wide range of customizable management options, smart occupancy management helps them understand how their spaces are utilized.

Technology And Occupancy Management

Technology has become a necessity to thrive in a post-pandemic world. Likewise, to implement smart occupancy management, data analytics has become crucial. IoT technology is the foundation for these management systems and solutions. The IoT solutions that address occupancy challenges include up-to-date databases, space demand trackers, occupancy sensors, and reports assessing key performance metrics among others.

Benefits of Smart Occupancy Management

The service providers can benefit from an array of occupancy management solutions that allow clarity over the use of spaces, trends, projections related to space use, continuous modifications based on analysis to meet corporate needs, etc. Besides, monitoring and analyzing a given space, occupancy promotes health and wellbeing, reduces costs, and improves sustainability.

Real-time Information: Occupancy sensors, one of the most acclaimed IoT solutions for occupancy management, provide real-time data through high-tech thermal imaging technology, making it possible to access real-time information regarding capacity constraints. The real-time and previously recorded data through these sensors can help in occupancy management through data analysis. For eg. Parking lot traffic can be managed by analyzing and optimizing traffic bottlenecks.

Effective Space Utilisation & Cost Advantage: Space management IoT solutions also allow employees to work productively and owners to find underutilized spaces that can be used effectively. Also, figuring out the busiest days can promote better staffing and reduced running costs. It is a feasible solution for identifying the locations that require greater attention and investment. All of this ultimately has financial advantages for the business owners.

Sustainability, Safety & Hygiene: As far as sustainability is concerned, it is intrinsically achieved by adjusting energy use through the automation of heating, ventilation, air conditioning, lighting, and other systems according to the anticipated occupancy of the spaces. Monitoring occupancy is the simplest, most economical way to accomplish safety and hygiene in public spaces and to maintain regular cleaning schedules. Even case studies have demonstrated that occupancy space management reduces carbon emissions and promotes health and sustainability.

Business Alignment & Customer Management: From a business point of view, popular customer hotspots can give insights into the product preferences of the customers, which can help to position strategic products in places that generate the most income. From customers’ point of view, information about long queues and waiting lines can help them plan accordingly.

Strategic Importance of Occupancy Management

Employing data analytics in any walk of life encourages the identification of potential threats and their timely settlement through optimal solutions. Likewise, an understanding of spaces can leverage solutions that make service providers better equipped to deal with occupancy-related problems. It helps organizations to accomplish better space planning, space utilization, and obtain a facility management strategy that is more economical and brings a positive return on investment.

At nhance, we offer smart and intuitive solutions to support your organization’s specific occupancy needs. Be it a standalone occupancy project or a complete space management requirement, nhance brings to you the best of class solutions and expertise. To know more reach out to our experts here.

- By nhance

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