Exploring the Evolution of the Building Services Industry
The building services industry is changing rapidly as new technologies emerge, and as the economy, demographics and the environment change. The built environment is facing unprecedented change, with the biggest disruption in generations. There are many areas of the building services industry that are growing, for example:
– Energy efficiency and sustainability
– Renewable energy
– Legacy infrastructure
– BIM
– Smart buildings
**Energy efficiency and sustainability**
There is a growing trend to reduce the energy consumption and carbon footprint of buildings, with the goal for buildings to eventually produce as much energy as they consume. This is especially true of large commercial buildings, such as shopping centres and office buildings, but it also applies to smaller buildings, such as houses.
Energy efficiency can be achieved through energy efficient design, energy efficient building materials, and energy efficient building systems.
**Renewable energy**
There is a growing shift towards renewable energy, with a focus on green energy that is produced by wind, solar, geothermal and hydroelectric power.
Renewable energy is used to power small buildings, such as houses, and also large buildings, such as commercial buildings and whole communities. For example, the community of Tonsley in South Australia was designed to be powered by renewable energy.
**Legacy infrastructure**
There is a growing focus on maintaining and upgrading existing infrastructure, rather than building new infrastructure. This is particularly true of electrical infrastructure, such as power stations, power lines and substations, which are becoming more and more vital to the functioning of modern society.
**BIM**
BIM (Building Information Modelling) is becoming increasingly popular, and is now being used on many construction projects. BIM is a 3D model-based process that gives architecture, engineering, and construction professionals an insight into the project throughout the lifecycle of the project.
**Smart buildings**
There is a growing focus on building ‘smart buildings’, which use technology to improve the building’s efficiency, comfort and security. These buildings use automated systems such as HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning), lighting, access control and fire protection. Smart buildings also have a building management system to monitor and manage the building’s systems.