International. According to a report published by IHS Electronics & Media, by 2017 annual spending on integrated systems for smart buildings will grow by 150%. In addition, the global market is expected to grow at an average annual rate of 20.3% to go from $12.6 billion in 2012 to $31.6 billion in 2017.
"One of the key factors for system integration and smarter building construction is the energy efficiency savings that can be achieved," said William Rhodes, senior market analyst for IHS, explaining the reasons for this growth.
"While it is true that energy efficiency represents only one aspect of smart building design, its effectiveness is easy to quantify and building owners can immediately see the return on their investment," Rhodes said.
Finally, the report indicated that although currently the amount of autonomous (non-integrated) equipment installed in buildings exceeds the number of integrated ones, the trend in new and renovated properties is to have at least a basic level of integration, so it is expected that investment in this type of systems will continue to rise.
