Building security and automation integrates technologies that make buildings secure and efficient. Such integration streamlines operations and reduces waste, while ensuring the security of building occupants and assets.
Building security and automation integrates technologies that make buildings secure and efficient. Such integration streamlines operations and reduces waste, while ensuring the security of building occupants and assets. This article takes a closer look at
building security and automation and the benefits it brings.
Uniting security and building management
Building security and automation unite security and building management. The two systems had long worked in silos, which creates difficulties such as complexity of operation and reduced efficiency. Integrating the two solves many of those problems.
“Whether it’s through integration with CCTV and visitor management platforms to monitor and manage a seamless visitor experience, or intelligent building management based on occupancy to improve energy efficiency and reduce emissions, in the modern access control world there is an ever-expanding range of integrations and automation allowing for increasingly bespoke solutions,” said Nick Mercer, Marketing Manager at TDSi. “These integrations allow end users to begin with a base access control platform and add integrations to suit their specific needs, reducing expenditure on features and functionality that aren’t important to their particular requirements.”
Key benefits
In short, building security and automation offers several benefits. These include enhanced security and safety, energy savings, operational efficiency and improved comfort. Below we look at each in greater detail.
Safety and security
First and foremost, building security and automation ensures the security and safety of building occupants and assets.
“The integration of video surveillance and access control systems is often considered the default security system setup for new building projects in most enterprise-level end user industries. Most security integration platforms integrate video surveillance with access control overlay camera feeds of designated entryways that provide real-time information from access control credentials. Integrations between access control and intrusion detection equipment is also growing, especially in certain end user industries like education and retail,” said Bryan Montany, Principal Analyst for Access Control and Physical Security Technologies at Omdia.
Energy savings
Building security and automation allows enhanced
energy savings, which is in line with the
sustainability trend in building design, construction and operations. “According to Omdia ITEI end-user survey, the top two responses from end-users about benefits from smart building technologies deployments are improved energy efficiency/sustainability and cost savings,” said Ivy Sun, Research Manager for Smart Buildings at Omdia. “By optimizing HVAC, lighting, and other systems based on occupancy and usage, automation significantly reduces energy waste, leading to lower utility costs.”
Operational efficiency
Building security and automation also leads to increased operational efficiency. “Protecting what matters most to the residents of a building through the provision of security is crucial, however if this process can be automated it changes the game,” said James Clark, Director of Sales for EMEA & APAC at AMAG Technology. “Building operators manage complex systems and are concerned about security breaches, upgrade costs, continuous surveillance, and balancing security with the user experience. Automation reduces the need for manual intervention, allowing security operators to focus on critical tasks while an identity management system handles routine monitoring and adjustments.”
Improve comfort
Finally, improved comfort is another key benefit. “In terms of comfort, building automation maintains consistent temperature, humidity, and indoor air quality, creating a healthier environment. It also allows for personalized comfort settings across zones, responsive lighting control, and reduced mechanical noise. These features not only improve occupant well-being but also enhance productivity, making building automation essential for both operational efficiency and user satisfaction,” Sun said.
Given all these benefits, it comes as no surprise that building security and automation is seeing increased demand.
“We are seeing a shift towards greater integration as more connected building devices come online and major Tier One vendors invest in integrated building platforms,” Sun said. “According to the latest 2024 ITEI survey by Omdia, about 70 percent of over 1,700 respondents from different verticals expressed the level of integration between building management systems and physical security systems in their organization is in very high or high demand. The integration ultimately creates a more intelligent, responsive, and efficient building management ecosystem, enhancing operational effectiveness, security, and the occupant experience."