FM KEY TO SMART CITIES, SAY DETECTOR INSTALLERS

One in four installers of fire and smoke detectors (24 per cent) believe the FM service sector will feel ‘the greatest impact” of the Internet of Things (IoT) and the way it integrates into the coming generation of smart cities. A survey by fire detection product manufacturer Hochiki Europe, conducted with ‘life safety’ installers across EMEA and India, saw respondents suggesting that the growth of cloud-based monitoring systems in their own sector would change significantly as a result of integration with smart cities. Respondents also suggested that the healthcare, education and construction sectors were the most likely to have to adapt as building systems link together across smart cities.

Simon May, technical manager at Hochiki Europe, said: “With smart cities now a focus for many global planning authorities given their potential to improve the sustainability and liveability of the built environment, urban planners are only now scratching the surface of how advanced communications infrastructure can help enhance life safety provision to city residents.  “Examining the value of smart technology in city planning provides a breadth of information to help explore the impact of smart cities on life safety, both in terms of the possibilities they offer and the challenges that will need to be addressed to ensure we succeed in further improving fire safety in the built environment.”