Building optimization is the process of increasing building performance. Performance can be defined by many different owner and operator goals that include energy savings, reliability, operations and maintenance costs, occupant satisfaction and well-being, industry certification ratings, and many others. Optimization is about maximizing the building performance, as defined by the customized set of goals, by paying attention to the details without getting lost in the weeds. Often this process is about understanding where reality hasn’t aligned with the conceptual intents and making a plan to address these inconsistencies.

As building systems and technology continue to advance, the amount of operational data available has increased tremendously, and with it, the potential for sophisticated control, monitoring and maintenance strategies. However, the high potential for enhanced building performance through the integration of systems and technology has also resulted in an increased potential for small issues contributing to large degradations in performance. Inaccurate sensors (outright failure or simply drift), incorrect mappings between communication protocols and control sequence infighting are some of the ways that technologies utilized to produce better building performance can derail achievement of the building goals.