Podcast

Program notes

Not since the advent of using iron and steel in construction have we seen such dramatic changes in the way we think about the built environment and its relationship to the work we do.

Connected buildings are so much more than automated lighting and HVAC. Energy costs and worker productivity are serious issues, but so are urban growth and climate change.

ConnectivityWeek, and the "Buildings 2.0" concept, are at the center of making buildings intelligent participants in solving problems.

And this week in Chicago we get to participate in shaping and defining what that means. The master mind behind ConnectivityWeek is Anto Budiardjo, CEO of Clasma Events.

Transcript

Anto Budiardjo: We started this journey five years ago by recognizing that there is a need to focus on the connectivity subjects related to building systems. The name "BuilConn" is short for "Building Connectivity." The focus was always about the connectivity issues within buildings and building systems.

As the years unfolded we realized that all of the issues are not strictly within buildings, but went external to the buildings with subjects such as energy, ZigBee and Wireless, which are not specific to buildings. That's why we developed this whole concept of Connectivity Week -- as an umbrella term to describe what happens in this week -- to discuss various issues related to connectivity, buildings, energy and other areas where connectivity is now starting to become to be very important.

Denis: BuilConn is a very interactive process. How and why did you decide to make BuilConn so interactive with the attendees?

Anto: It's interactive because BuilConn, as well as the other activities that happen in Connectivity Week, are really conferences and events that are designed to bring people together that normally don’t interact with each other.

In the buildings context we’re bringing together people from the HVAC industry with people from the security, lighting, IT and other industries. This gets broader in the different areas within Connectivity Week. These people don’t normally interact with each other. One of the missions of BuilConn and Connectivity Week is to encourage interaction between these groups that don’t typically face each other or meet each other.

In the future this is going to be much more important, as all of the systems within buildings -- in fact, all of the systems within the device-connectivity pervasive internet -- will start to connect with each other.

Denis: Of course we can’t have all workshops and no play. Every event has its parties, and Connectivity Week is no exception.

Anto: Absolutely no exception. From the very first event, BuilConn five years ago, we recognized the importance of networking, of socializing between these different groups that gather at this event.

We have welcome receptions on Tuesday as people start to arrive at the event. On Wednesday this week we have IBB. That stands for Interoperable Blues Band, which is a jam session -- a gathering of a number of industry stakeholders that decided four years ago to start to play music with each other during BuilConn. It’s a loud rock/blues session where everyone is invited. If you can’t sing, we’ll put you back where a microphone can’t hear you. It’s a very fun activity.

On Thursday we do the Industry Awards Gala, which is were we announce the winners of Buildy Awards. This year we’ll also announce the winners of the GridWise Applied Awards, which are for those individuals which have organizations that have applied the GridWise principles.

Denis: You've organized a three-day conference here. Sum up for us what some of the main overarching themes are that we might hear about starting this morning and throughout the week.

Anto: The two most important themes that we’ll be talking about this week -- first is the evolution of what we have started to call Buildings 2.0. Buildings 2.0 was born in the Cisco Round Table in Dubai in February. It’s really a way of looking at buildings in a completely new way. We’re not just talking about open systems or integration. We’re talking about how everything about buildings -- from the design to construction, to operations, to systems, to the way we apply or use energy within buildings -- really needs to start to be re-created. Buildings 2.0 is the term for that, that was born a few months ago. We’re hoping to develop that even further over the next few days.

The second theme, which is very key, is energy. Energy is becoming a real issue -- certainly in the U.S., especially driven by the shortage of electricity and the lack of reliability of electricity -- and it's going to get worse over the next few years. The subject of demand response is the way we’ve framed this energy issue during BuilConn and Connectivity this week. A number of speakers and tracks are going to be focused on demand response and why it is very important. It’s also an incredibly interesting opportunity for all players within the building and connectivity space.

Denis: How many speakers do you have in all?

Anto: At last count, for this event, about 90, which is a large number of speakers for an event of this size. We feel it’s very important to gather experts on these evolving subjects. That’s why we always have an incredible line-up of speakers, from a quantity as well as a quality point of view. These are experts in fields that we’re going to be covering, everything from buildings to convergence, demand response, energy, the smart grid, as well as technology subjects such as Web services, wireless and other areas.

Denis: Events like ConnectivityWeek are the fun part of my job, and I'm going to share that fun with you for the next three days.

You're listening to the first in a series of podcasts coming to you from a studio right here at ConnectivityWeek in Chicago.

Every morning, at builconn.com, you'll find fresh podcasts to start your day. There will be "highlights" where I look ahead to the events of the day, so you'll know which sessions not to miss. And there will be "insights", where I pick a selected speaker of the day and interview them so you can hear their unique insights on a specific keynote or conference track happening that day.

You can be part of the podcast, too. I'm here in Chicago all week. If you want to share your thoughts, find me and introduce yourself.

And tune your PC to builconn.com every morning to catch the latest podcasts from ConnectivityWeek.