BOULDER, Colo. — Offering automated, real-time control of every major system in commercial buildings, networked building controls can provide building owners and operators with significant cost savings through more efficient use of energy, notes Navigant Research. As large commercial buildings are increasingly targeted by national and local energy efficiency policies, building owners are looking for solutions that can reduce energy consumption and improve operational efficiency. According to a report from the research firm, worldwide revenue from networking and communications equipment for building automation systems will grow from $21.3 billion in 2014 to $34.7 billion by 2021.

“Commercial buildings consume nearly one-quarter of all electricity globally, making the automation systems that improve, measure, and verify building efficiency a critical part of energy management,” said Eric Woods, research director with Navigant Research. “The increased availability of simple-to-use, web-based dashboards for building management, along with the introduction of Internet Protocol (IP)-enabled devices, is helping to smooth the way for building managers to move toward more networked control systems.”