Feasibility Study on Intelligent Building

FEASIBILITY STUDY ON INTELLIGENT BUILDING

‘We can create a more sustainable, cleaner and safer world by making wiser energy choices’

Robert Alan

American Writer, Artist, Social Activist

INTRODUCTION

In terms of today’s technology, intelligent building is a building that integrates technology and process to create a facility that is safer, more comfortable and productive for its occupants, and more operationally efficient for its owners.

Several names can be found as synonyms for “intelligent building” when IT solutions are considered. Easily, we can find references to “smart buildings”, “domotics”, and “high-tech buildings”, among others.

Roughly, we can characterize three phases associated with the intelligent building concept:

- the first one, till middle of eighties, where the main emphasis is on “automated buildings” and the intelligent building is a collection of innovative technologies;

- the second one, till beginning of the nineties, where the main emphasis is on “responsible buildings” and the intelligent building concept can be characterized as a collection of technologies able to respond to organizational change over time;

- finally, in the third phase the emphasis is on the “effective building” concept, where the intelligent building can support business objectives, integrating adequate space, business and building management, and where technologies are seen as tools to support those goals.

For building an intelligent building, as a developer, you must know the return on investment time. In order to find out this information, you must consult a feasibility study.

PROJECT SPONSOR

One ore more developers who want to invest their money for construction of an office building equipped with high technical equipment, powered up with green energy sources and offering a high level of inside comfort.

1. BUSINESS CASE

1.1 Purpose

The purpose is coming from the need of the developer to know, before starting the design and construction, how much money will cost him, what is the amount of time in witch the return on investment will occur and if there are any potential buyers for the offices that he will build. The feasibility study will answer to all his questions and according to it the developer will decide if he will invest his money or not.

1.2 Business opportunity

The developer has an opportunity to return his investment in a specific amount of time and afterwards to make profit for future projects.

1.3 Alternatives

The developer has the alternative to build a regular office building, without a feasibility study, but it will be harder to find buyers because of the lack of inside comfort, compared to an intelligent office building. Also, the money expense for utilities (heating, hot water, electrical energy) in a ten years management will be higher.

1.4 Time for achievement

The feasibility study will be accomplished in 6 months from the date notified by the developer as the start date.

1.5 Constrains and risks

The constrains are formed by the market fluctuation (buyers can be interested in a less expensive office space to the detriment of comfort) and by the risk to exceed the estimated return on investment time because of the market rates.

Also, in the process of developing the feasibility study some studies are needed, like impact over environment study, geological study and substantiation and emplacement study.