Product and technology update 2022

Peter is responsible for intelligent control solutions for automated solar shading in commercial buildings, such as offices, schools and education settings.

For those new to Somfy Projects, we deliver intelligent control solutions for interior or exterior solar shading such as blinds or screens, that are automated and that can adapt to various conditions – this can include geographical and environmental conditions, the energy needs of the building and the preferences of the occupants when it comes to comfort and productivity.

We caught up with Peter to see what’s new when it comes to the latest product and technology developments.

What exciting plans do you have coming up as an organisation when it comes to new products?

We are currently working on some fantastic new projects which we expect to become available during next year.

Whilst I can’t share a lot of details with you yet, one of them will be something really exciting in terms of simplicity, user experience, and of course connectivity! During the development process we have interviewed some of the key stakeholders in the industry; including architects, consultants and installers, to receive the latest insights on their needs when it comes to implementing an automated solar shading solution. To keep aligned, we will keep them updated during the development stages with status updates and sneak previews of the look and feel, which will allow us to receive their valuable feedback during the development process.

What technology are you most looking forward to using more of in the future?

From a personal point of view, I’m especially excited to see how the Matter protocol will bring all our connected devices together in the coming years. With Somfy being a member of the Connectivity Standards Alliance I believe we have some exciting times ahead in terms of connected devices creating a true Smart Home where everything is integrated and is working together.

Switching to talk about intelligent controls for automated solar shading in commercial buildings, I think that connectivity and data is becoming increasingly important. Up until a couple of years ago, remote connection with a project site was only possible for us when someone gave you access – meaning you still needed to have a person on-site to click on a button. Today, with our remote maintenance possibilities, we can be notified via an alert if something needs investigation on a project, allowing us to take action even before the building user may notice the issue.  In the near future, I believe that using data will allow us to be notified even earlier. Meaning that the notification to our local service teams arrives even before something is potentially amiss on a project site, based on the data provided by the actuators and system components.

Have you noticed any demand changes when it comes to technology within your industry?

Remote connectivity is a market standard, especially during the COVID pandemic it was sometimes impossible to go on certain sites due to health & safety risks. On projects where a remote connection is available, it allows our teams to do some checks remotely. Take a worst case scenario, when a system is down because of a problem, the remote connectivity allows our service engineers to quickly provide a temporary bypass, meaning that end users can at least use their blinds via the local control. Especially during the first lockdown, a lot of areas in Northern Europe experienced hot and sunny weather, and with blinds not working the temperature in building can raise quickly.

Also we see a growing demand when it comes to connecting the automated solar shading control systems to the Building Management System (BMS). With our animeo KNX offer and of course the animeo IB+ TouchBuCo BACnet we are able to integrate into the BMS, allowing a multitude of smart services to be integrated and communicate with one another.

Why should building designers partner with Somfy?

When it comes to the intelligent control of automated solar shading, we are one of the leading advisors, in some of our Northern Europe countries, we have more than 30 years of experience of delivering these solutions, which is now seeing a growing demand driven by the collective approach to sustainability and energy efficiency in construction. The fact that buildings are becoming even more focused on user experience and occupant comfort and well-being also contributes to the growing demand for these intelligent solutions

We are not only a manufacturer or supplier. Our highly experienced locally based teams are there by your side to support in every project phase, from the specification and design of the build or renovation project to the commissioning and training, and once the system is use we are there to support on service & maintenance long into the future.  I think this is where building designers and also owners can really fully appreciate the benefits our solutions bring.

What opportunities do you see for smart technologies in commercial buildings?

With the world changing, also because of the pandemic, we saw an increase in the number of people working from home, with smart technologies becoming even more important. And with our cities changing rapidly, what is an office building today could be transformed into an apartment complex tomorrow. That why our solutions allow building owners to recreate spaces, adding local control or remove the remote control allowing the shading to be operated based on automation.   

The last few years have been challenging for all industries. What challenges have you had? And how have you dealt with them as a team?

Due to the challenges we have seen recently across the supply chain, we have of course had to adapt accordingly and be creative and flexible in our approach to address these challenges when they occur and our priority is to support and keep our customers informed and up to date.

In Northern Europe, we have locally based expert teams – across the teams, we have a great culture of sharing information and best practice, so when challenges are faced we continue to collaborate and find the best way forward to support our customers through their own challenges too.