The tech capital of India is the highest investor in smart buildings

BANGALORE, INDIA: A new survey of 2,000 buildings across India by Honeywell and research-specialist IMRB International shows that government, building owners and service providers need to invest more in smart building technologies.

While the country’s airports and hotels are leading the way with smart building technologies, the survey found that in general the smartness of buildings in India is low.

The survey marks the debut of the new Honeywell Smart Building Score, a first-of-its-kind global tool that evaluates buildings based on each facility’s use of technologies to make the building green, safe, and productive – three key aspects of smart buildings.

“The Indian government’s 100 Smart Cities plan is a forward-looking initiative that aims to improve quality of life and make the country a smarter place to live.

The 2,000 buildings participating in the survey are located in Ahmedabad, Bangalore, Chennai, Delhi-NCR, Hyderabad, Kolkata, Mumbai, and Pune.

Among the key findings of the survey:

· In general, the smartness of buildings in India is low. On a scale of 1 to 100, the national average Honeywell Smart Building Score for these buildings is only 33.

· Airports and hotels in India have the smartest buildings overall

· Scoring the lowest were buildings in the education (27) and residential (26) categories.

· Most buildings in the survey score highest on green elements (45), potentially reflecting the focus on sustainability from leading global and Indian rating agencies, as well as government incentives to improve building sustainability and energy efficiency.

· Safety scores of buildings on average were very low

· The lowest rated aspect of buildings in the survey was the safety and personal protection of workers who service and maintain these buildings.

· Both private (34) and public (29) buildings have similar overall scores.

· Bangalore has invested the most in smart buildings (57%), potentially owing to newer construction, while Mumbai can do more (36%).