Smart Tech For Building Retrofits: What Are The Viable Strategies?
Susan Clarke
Access this research
Access all Building Digital Platforms & Operational Tech content with a strategic subscription or buy this single report
Need help or have a question about this report? Contact us for assistance
Executive Summary
This report helps facility managers and building technology vendors understand the viable strategies to increase the performance of existing buildings. With over 80% of buildings in many developed countries now over 25 years of age, building owners, tenants and investors look to better understand how to make their existing buildings more efficient and engaging for occupants. Based on our recent research into the evolving visions and technology ecosystem for future smart buildings, this report outlines the critical questions that building managers must answer when identifying suitable retrofit strategies. The report identifies the six promising strategies and associated technologies to make existing buildings more efficient and engaging for occupants. The options reviewed in this report include both zero-capital approaches, which are based upon analysing existing building data to identify any inefficiency, and those that analyse very granular facility data to inform strategies such as better fault detection and predictive maintenance.The Building Retrofit Puzzle: How To Find Projects That Deliver Sufficient Efficiency And Worker Productivity Benefits
Five Decision Points For Building Managers When Selecting Smart Building Tech For Retrofits
Six Viable Strategies To Smarten Up Existing Buildings
Figure 2. Decision Tree: How To Find The Right Building Retrofit Strategy
About the Author
Susan Clarke
Research Director
Susan leads the Verdantix Smart Buildings practice. Her current research agenda focuses on software solutions for real estate management including integrated workplace managem...
Other related content
Developers, asset owners, project management firms and investors face a fragmented market of project planning software vendors, each making competing claims about AI, interoperabil...
Upcoming / 23 June, 2026
Digital decarbonization is evolving rapidly, and many of the tools used for carbon reporting today are not designed to support the operational decisions organizations need to make ...
Upcoming / 28 May, 2026
Energy volatility is no longer a future risk. It is a present-day operational challenge. Industrial firms are under growing pressure from fluctuating prices, shifting dependencies ...
Upcoming / 27 May, 2026
Europe alone requires €12 trillion in infrastructure investment by 2040. This statistic set the tone for Bentley Systems’s 2026 Illuminate conference in Berlin, which showcased h...
12 May, 2026
A structural shift is underway — and it’s already hitting the bottom line. Energy is emerging as a defining constraint on growth. Electricity demand is rising at rates far beyond...
Upcoming / 10 June, 2026
Green leases are no longer a niche instrument for sustainability-minded landlords. They have become a mainstream feature of commercial real estate, with Verdantix survey data sho...
28 April, 2026