Toronto-based WZMH Architects has been recruited into Microsoft’s global Internet of Things (IoT) Insiders Labs, a program aimed at “transforming how people, devices, and data interact in every sphere of life.” The firm’s Intelligent Structural Panel (ISP) offers a “plug and play infrastructure” allowing a wide range of spaces and devices to be adapted, remotely-controlled, and optimized.
WZMH is the first architecture firm to be accepted into the program, which takes applications from organizations developing IoT and/or AI solutions.
Intelligent Structural Panel. Image via WZMH via Canadian Architect
The Insider Labs program seeks out start-up and established firms to work alongside Microsoft experts from three bases in Redmond USA, Shenzhen China, and Munich Germany. Products are developed, prototyped, and tested for market commercialization, steering the course of how citizens will use future urban environments.
WZMH Architects, the firm behind Toronto’s CN Tower, have worked in collaboration with Quasar Consulting Group, Stephenson Engineering, and C3PoE in the development of the Intelligent Structural Panel. The installation of the panels throughout a building allows occupants to interact with sensors triggered by touch, sound, or other devices.
Data collected from the panels can be used by building operators to control lighting, heating, ventilation, elevators, shading, smoke alarms, security systems etc. For commercial viability, the team is developing the panel to be prefabricated, modular, cost-effective, and sustainable.
The Intelligent Structural Panel© technology reimagines the traditional approach to the design and build process, taking a critical look at how buildings are built from the inside out. Bringing smart technology directly into the fabric of the structure instead of applying it as an after thought will improve the quality of the building’s performance.
-Zenon Radewych, Principal, WZMH
More information about the Microsoft Internet of Things Insiders Labs, including details on how to apply for the program, can be found here.
News via: Canadian Architect