Intelligent Building Networks

Report Highlights

• Total U.S. smart network device expenditures will show an AAGR (average annual growth rate) of 9.3%, rising from about $1.62 billion in 2004 to $2.53 billion by 2009.
• Hardware is expected to remain the largest single expenditure category, reflecting continued growth in the total number of networked appliances in the U.S.
• The fastest growing product category, however, is expected to be embedded chips with a 10% AAGR, reflecting the drive to design and deploy microprocessors in a wider variety of ways and settings.
• The fastest growing area of applications spending is expected to be energy usage, metering and monitoring.

INTRODUCTION

Intelligent device networking has become a fertile meeting ground for a wide range of different industries and companies. Despite perennial predictions heralding an era of fully automated “smart building” as the next big thing, for practical purposes, the prospect of intelligently networked devices, until very recently, has remained a geek fantasy. Intriguing as the notion remains, for decades reality has lagged behind promise, as manufacturers and vendors struggle (often at crosspurposes) to put enabling, foundational technologies into place.

Several developments have made intelligent device networking a true ready-forprimetime technology. Among them, the industry has moved into an age of post proprietary standards including a home automation standard (CeBus) and two protocols for building controls and automation (BacNet and LonTalk). These, and other developments, are making open integrating architectures, and the ability to apply them on a mass scale across many system suppliers, becomes a realistic possibility for the first time.

This BCC study delineates the most critical developments in intelligent device and device networking technologies over the past several years, tracing the history of the field as well as reporting on the current state of the art. It examines the near-term commercial opportunities and challenges of several different technologies and products as well as future trends for smart device, and networking expenditures through 2009.

SCOPE OF STUDY

The report contains:

• An overview of all aspects of smart building device technologies and services
• Analysis of communications infrastructure software, networking and hardware used for the construction operation, servicing and maintenance of networked smart devices
• Discussion of historic and emerging demographic and use trends
• Analysis of the U.S. market for all technologies and services with forecasts through 2009
• An examination of the emerging dynamics of growing markets
• A discussion of international aspects
• Outlines of the current positioning of key players in technological and end-user markets.

METHODOLOGY AND SOURCES

Preparation of this report involved in-depth study and critical analyses of published data from a wide variety of government and private sources. Industry projections have been made by BCC based on original studies of economic, social and technological trends, as well as a critical examination of projections made by industry and other public sources.