January 3, 2007—Sensor networking technology ZigBee should start finding significant adoption in commercial building applications in 2008, according to a new study published by ABI Research.
There are three major markets for sensor networking: the home, commercial buildings, and industrial facilities, and ZigBee aims to cover them all. In the home, there are alternatives to ZigBee, and in industry there are some questions about its suitability. But according to senior analyst Sam Lucero, commercial building automation is a market where ZigBee is competitively positioned against other wireless sensor technologies.
Of the five top vendors of building automation systems, which together control about 70% of the market, four – Johnson Controls, Siemens, TAC, and Trane – have introduced wireless products based on ZigBee in the past year, and the fifth – Honeywell – is moving toward doing so.
Over the next five years, up to 20% of commercial building automation system field equipment may “go wireless,” seeking the lower costs, better control, and greater flexibility that such systems deliver.
For more information, see the ABI Research Web site.
