ICD Brookfield Place (ICDBP), one of Dubai’s premier lifestyle and business venues, recently announced that it has chosen Facilio Inc., a leading AI-driven property operations platform, as its technology partner. With over 4 acres of curated dining, retail, and community space, alongside 990,000 square feet of Grade A office space in the heart of Dubai’s Commercial Business District, ICDBP sets the benchmark in addressing the changing wellbeing, environmental and productivity needs of today’s workforce. The collaboration seeks to optimize the operations of the Dubai International Financial Centre based luxury property, to the highest global standards in commercial office space.

CM Today had a conversation with Haithem Ibraheem (HI), Property Operations Manager, ICD Brookfield Place, and Prabhu Ramachandran (PR), Founder and CEO of Facilio Inc., about the next-gen built environment their companies are co-creating, and why they believe the ICDBP project sets a future-ready template, for progressive real estate development and management.

The buzz around the ICD Brookfield Place property is that it will set an unprecedented benchmark in occupant wellness and user experiences. What prompted this technology driven approach?

HI: A new generation of tenants are pushing for highly responsive and personalized services, which traditional models of real estate operations are not able to deliver. At the same time, CRE businesses are being subjected to more stringent regulations, as well as the need to achieve optimal sustainability and ensure occupant health within their premises.

ICD Brookfield Place has been envisioned as a project which will deliver all these outcomes to the highest possible standards, at the same time. At ICD Brookfield, we are driven by the desire to implement a modern, data-driven model of building operations, to deliver outstanding user experiences. As we launch the workplace of the future, we needed a scalable and flexible tech solution to address the changing wellbeing, environmental, and productivity needs of today’s workforce.

In your opinion, what are the key innovations that will enable you to be more engaged with occupants, and implement this integrated and holistic model of operations?

HI: Building automation has traditionally operated in silos, making it very difficult for operations teams to be agile and deliver real-time intelligence that contemporary tenants seek. Fortunately, emerging technologies, in the shape of cloud-based and centralized software platforms, are making it possible to integrate multiple building systems - such as HVAC, fire response, security etc. – under a single command and control mechanism.

Implementing IoT, AI analytics, and Cloud connectivity, in conjunction, allow building operators to collate real-time operational intelligence, and use it to continuously optimize asset performance and enhance the occupant experience. Perhaps even more importantly, this is a completely scalable and agnostic approach, which will continue to grow in the future, as innovations in the form of the latest sensors, systems, and devices emerge and get added to infrastructure.

What role do you see for tech innovators, such as Facilio, in this hyper-connected, real-time and optimized model of CRE operations?

PR: I think the key departure that this generation of technologies represents, from previous models, is its ability to derive value from the huge volumes of data that buildings produce. Being able to aggregate hard-to-access data, optimize building performance in real-time, and control operations from one place, unlocks true granular transparency and the ability to implement data-driven decision making, at a portfolio scale. This unified view of operations allows building owners and operators to implement intelligence driven optimization, and deliver exceptionally responsive occupant experiences, as well as exceed sustainability goals.

Facilio was founded on the vision to help the commercial real estate industry transition away from traditional, reactive operations toward a proactive, data-driven model. Our solution gives a complete operational picture of the real estate portfolio, allowing operators to seamlessly anticipate inefficiencies and identify opportunities for improvement in real time.

Could you please elaborate on how this operational intelligence enabled model will help set the ICD Brookfield Facilio project apart, on the global stage?

PR: Facilio’s cloud based platform will create a centralized command and control mechanism for ICD Brookfield Place. This integrated, holistic and responsive management model is based on the capacity to manage and control spaces, automation, and equipment performance, using a single window view. ICD Brookfield Place will be able to set world-class standards in sustainability goals, lower operating costs and ensure complete regulatory compliance, while also delivering extraordinary occupant experiences.

Facilio is able to help building owners unlock the power of data. It empowers them with the ability to monitor all the embedded assets in the building, identify discrepancies and implement AI generated insights for continuus operational efficiencies on a  real-time basis. Our solution helps implement a data-driven and proactive approach that empowers all property operations stakeholders, to generate value for the business and drastically reduce the possibility of downtime and disruption in services. Most importantly, the industry is now servicing a new generation of tenants, which expects the same personalization of services that they are accustomed to, in every other aspect of their lives. This tech-enabled business model delivers a standard in services that the CRE industry’s customers will expect and demand by default, moving forward.