Smart buildings are generating more data than ever - from energy use and occupancy to air quality and system performance. Without interoperability and clear standards, much of this data remains siloed, fragmented, and underutilized.
In this Smart Cities Council webinar, we addressed the urgent need for open, interoperable data standards in smart buildings. While some open already exist, they are not widely adopted, and many cities and organizations are left to create their own systems due to a lack of enforceable, consistent standards. This results in fragmented data, inefficiencies, and vendor lock-in, especially from major proprietary system providers. So, how can existing standards be better utilized and promoted?
Speakers:
Key Themes and Insights
The Data Explosion and Its Challenges
Buildings today generate vast amounts of data from energy usage and occupancy to air quality and system performance. However, much of this data remains fragmented, siloed, and underutilized. The panel emphasized that without open and interoperable data standards, organizations are forced to create bespoke solutions, hindering scalability and innovation.
The Case for Open Standards and Interoperability
Nathan Brown, founder of BCA Engineers, highlighted his experience integrating disparate systems - such as fire alarm panels and smart extinguishers - into unified data lakes. He stressed the necessity for standardized data formats and protocols to enable seamless integration across building systems, regardless of manufacturer or technology.
Panelists agreed that specifying data requirements should become a standard part of building services engineering. Currently, technical specifications often lack guidance on data collection, storage, and transfer, leaving critical gaps in interoperability.
Real-World Perspectives and Use Cases
· City Government: Goran Babusku from the City of Stonnington described the challenges councils face managing a patchwork of proprietary systems. Their response was to develop a Smart Facilities Framework that prioritizes open communication standards and avoids vendor lock-in.
· Engineering and Asset Management: Harman Singh (GHD) and Wayne Herbert (AI Assets) recounted the evolution from data scarcity to data overload. They highlighted the importance of actionable, unified data, citing projects where asset registers and IoT sensors enabled predictive maintenance and streamlined operations whilst sharing use cases local and multinational clients.
· Technology Integration: Sameer Bhandari (Vantiq) discussed global projects where real-time, event-driven intelligence transformed building management. Examples included SoftBank’s headquarters in Japan, where integrating thousands of sensors and cameras enabled automated HVAC optimization, emergency response, and access control.
Barriers to Progress, Next Steps
The panel identified several persistent barriers:
· Proprietary Systems: Major vendors often design closed ecosystems, making data extraction and interoperability difficult.
· Lack of Awareness and Leadership: Both a lack of executive buy-in and limited awareness among engineers and architects slow adoption of open standards.
· Complexity and Usability: Existing standards can be overly technical, making them inaccessible to non-specialists and difficult to implement at scale.
The Path Forward: Recommendations and Next Steps
The webinar underscored that while technology and data are abundant, their value is unlocked only through collaboration, open standards, and a focus on actionable outcomes. The industry’s next challenge is to move from discussion to implementation, ensuring that smart buildings truly deliver on their promise of efficiency, safety, and adaptability.
