Smart Building Solutions: The Building Blocks of a Sustainable Future
In the quest for sustainability, smart buildings play a key role in the global effort to decarbonise our environment and improve our way of life. Equipped with advanced technologies, these buildings promise improved energy efficiency, significant reductions in carbon emissions, and health and safety benefits. As we look to a sustainable future, smart building solutions are emerging not just as a blueprint, but as the cornerstone of tomorrow's cities, factories and hospitals.
How “Smart” are Smart Buildings Really?
At their core, smart buildings use digital technologies to optimise energy consumption, improve air quality, increase thermal comfort and ensure safety. These buildings are characterised by their ability to adapt to the needs of their occupants while minimising their impact on the environment. Equans is at the forefront of this revolution, integrating digital functions that cover the entire life cycle of a building, from planning to maintenance, from commercial to hospital buildings.
Equans Digital Ushers in New Era of Smart Infrastructure
Equans Digital, launched in May 2022, is at the centre of this revolution, driving digital technologies to improve performance, optimise usage and achieve energy and CO2 efficiency.
This initiative represents a paradigm shift in infrastructure management, crystallising our decades-long philosophy that optimal performance is the result of the seamless integration of smart technologies and tailored action plans.
By capitalising on the synergy between digital innovation and sustainable building management, Equans Digital is not only anticipating the future, but actively shaping it and setting new standards for smart buildings worldwide.
Global Reach and Customised Expertise
Empowered by a team of 6,000 professionals in 17 countries, our expertise encompasses a comprehensive range of services that are essential for infrastructure modernisation. Equans Digital is revolutionising building management in the commercial, industrial and healthcare sectors by seamlessly integrating control and information systems with advanced technologies in hypervision, cybersecurity and indoor comfort.
Injecting Intelligence at Every Stage of a Building’s Lifecycle
Equans Digital's approach harnesses the full potential of data through the Building Operating System (BOS) to achieve ambitious energy and environmental targets, particularly in the transition to Industry 4.0. This middleware orchestrates the flow of information, manages and shares data within a governance framework. It automates data quality, prevents data loss and facilitates the easy integration of IoT devices and services to enhance scalability.
Our commitment to innovation extends to every stage of a building's lifecycle, including design, construction and maintenance. Our 150 BIM (Building Information Modelling) experts create dynamic models into which third-party fit-out data can be integrated, enabling sophisticated coordination between use and management. With such detailed data sets, Equans can simulate various scenarios, from managing building occupancy to installing equipment, providing managers with valuable decision support. In addition, as an integrated facilities manager, we provide day-to-day technical management of buildings and services to occupiers.
Paving the Way to Smart City Development
Smart cities and territories represent a vision of urban life that emphasises sustainability and efficiency. The smart city concept is an essential part of building a future where urban areas make a positive contribution to the environment, reduce greenhouse gas emissions and use renewable energy sources. Smart buildings are the backbone of smart cities. They manage energy, improve quality of life and ensure the safety of residents from the ground up.
Equans Digital's sustainable and citizen-centric solutions extend beyond smart buildings to public lighting, public safety and mobility management. Our digital solutions provide cities and regions with an informed overview of their infrastructure and enable better urban management and decarbonisation measures.
Public Lighting
Our expertise includes intelligent lighting systems that dynamically adjust brightness according to movement, increasing the safety of pedestrians and cyclists while reducing light pollution and energy consumption. In France, we have equipped more than 800,000 luminaires with remote control capabilities to create customised lighting plans. These innovations not only meet the specific needs of regions and companies, but also enable energy savings of up to 80%.
Public Safety
Equans offers cutting-edge technologies such as AI, monitoring and hypervision tools to help law enforcement agencies and operators ensure peace and security. Our comprehensive approach comprises video protection, secure public spaces and the creation of emergency centres to protect the population and increase the attractiveness of the regions.
Mobility Management
Equans addresses the challenges posed by urban densification by providing innovative mobility management solutions that focus on safely regulating the flow of traffic and use of public space, and optimising travel times. By adapting traffic lights to real-time traffic data captured by cameras and sensors, we work alongside public authorities to limit congestion. We promote alternative modes of transport that optimise energy consumption through the integration of EV charging solutions.
Smart Parking
Equans also implements smart parking solutions to improve traffic flow in cities, direct drivers to available parking spaces and effectively manage parking regulations. These initiatives aim to reduce pollution, improve mobility and revitalise city centres, contributing to the overall attractiveness and sustainability of urban areas.
With these strategic actions tailored to regional specificities, Equans is effectively shaping a future in which smart cities become hubs of environmental sustainability, public safety and better urban living.
Industry 4.0: The Emergence of Smart Factories
The industrial sector is undergoing a transformation with the advent of Industry 4.0, where smart factories are becoming the norm. These facilities use smart building technologies to streamline production processes, reduce energy consumption and minimise the carbon footprint of production activities. Equans is playing a key role in this transformation, delivering solutions that not only improve operational efficiency but also contribute to the industry's environmental goals.
Equans Smart Factory is an Industry 4.0-compliant strategic approach that enables recipe-driven manufacturers to achieve optimal production efficiency while reducing consumption. It provides a comprehensive solution for managing the production cycle, using advanced tools such as Artificial Intelligence for process optimisation, Business Intelligence for strategic insight and FMath for energy efficient operations. It supports compatibility with major automation platforms such as Siemens, Rockwell, Phoenix and Mitsubishi, providing a versatile and secure environment for production across multiple industries.
Integrating MES/SCADA/PLC software, our data-driven platform drives continuous improvement through AI, BI and operational efficiency (OEE) metrics, as well as tools for analysing production bottlenecks and tracking key performance indicators (KPIs). It has been successfully implemented at over 130 sites worldwide, proving its reliability and adaptability in diverse production environments.
Revolutionising the Healthcare Sector with Smart Hospitals
In the healthcare sector, smart hospitals are demonstrating how intelligent building solutions can improve patient care and operational efficiency. By integrating technologies that effectively manage energy consumption, these hospitals provide a better patient experience while ensuring a sustainable approach to healthcare management. Equans' experience with smart building solutions for hospitals demonstrates the potential of technology to transform healthcare facilities into models of sustainability and efficiency.
Our commitment to Energy and Low Carbon Emissions:
- Bioclimatic building design: We focus on constructing environmentally friendly buildings that utilise natural resources for heating, cooling and lighting, thus significantly reducing energy demand.
- Renewable energy generation solutions: We specialise in the use of solar panels, wind turbines and other renewable energy systems to generate clean, sustainable energy on site.
- Energy performance management: Our advanced monitoring systems ensure optimal energy utilisation across all facilities and demonstrate our commitment to efficiency.
- Digitalisation: By using state-of-the-art digital solutions, we improve the healthcare experience for patients, carers and staff alike.
- Funding and subsidies: We advise you on obtaining financial support for green initiatives and help you invest in sustainable solutions.
- Regulatory compliance support: We understand complex environmental regulations and ensure projects meet the latest green energy and building automation control systems (BACS) standards.
Facing up to the challenges of the health, energy and digital crises, Equans offers solutions centred on air quality, energy efficiency and cyber protection. Our innovative strategy incorporates bioclimatic design, renewable energy and the digitalisation of healthcare to create sustainable and adaptable hospitals that are prepared for future demands.
Equans' commitment extends from planning to maintenance, with a focus on energy efficiency, optimal quality of care and cybersecurity, with the aim of decarbonising healthcare facilities while improving the user experience. This end-to-end support includes advanced data analytics, hypervision/BMS and IT infrastructure management, emphasising our commitment to creating smart hospitals that are sustainable, adaptable and secure.
Providing Optimal Care and Quality of Health:
- Programme plan translation: We translate health objectives into precise project plans and ensure that every detail is in line with the overall objectives.
- Co-design technical and digital/IT packages: We work closely with stakeholders to develop coherent technical solutions that fit seamlessly into the healthcare environment.
- Flexibility of space and equipment: Our designs ensure that the hospital's space and equipment can be quickly adapted to changing needs, as we are committed to future-proofing healthcare facilities.
- Facilities maintenance and management: We provide comprehensive services to maintain operational efficiency and reliability, demonstrating our commitment to uninterrupted care.
- Commitment to equipment performance: Ensuring the functionality and reliability of critical medical and infrastructure equipment is at the centre of everything we do.
- Optimisation of care processes: We use simulation tools to make patient care processes more efficient and effective.
Ensuring Security, Cybersecurity, and Operational Continuity
Cybersecurity and safety are paramount, and downtime in healthcare facilities is not an option. That's why our digital infrastructure solutions are designed to ensure continuity and security.
- Security of buildings and people: We prioritise the physical security of healthcare facilities, patients and staff to ensure a safe environment for all.
- Cybersecurity: Our cybersecurity strategies protect critical communication channels and digital infrastructure from new threats.
- Digital infrastructure for crisis management: We develop robust systems capable of managing healthcare operations during emergencies, ensuring continuity and resilience.
- Data-driven performance analytics: We use data analytics to improve the performance of technical services across the healthcare system to improve care and patient outcomes.
Equans' integrated solutions emphasise the central role of a sustainable, adaptable and secure healthcare environment in improving the quality of care and ensuring positive patient outcomes
Conclusion
The path to a low carbon future is paved with innovation in smart building solutions. As we continue to push the boundaries of sustainable development, partnering with experienced smart infrastructure experts such as Equans is becoming increasingly important. By using digital technologies to improve energy efficiency, air quality, thermal comfort and security, we can move forward towards a future where buildings not only fulfil their intended purpose, but also contribute to the health of our planet and our people.