Nordicum - Real Estate Annual Finland 2019 | Page 42

P
Wanted: Flow-How
KONE turned to its customers to create the next wave
of People Flow solutions for smart buildings
Urbanization and digitalization are two trends which drive the real
estate industry. The need to create improved buildings and better-
functioning cities means exploring new technologies and services.
With around 200 000 people moving into cities across the globe every
day – what kind of business opportunities does this present?
“D
evelopers and building owners
are under tremendous pressure
to deliver living and working
environments that meet increasing expec-
tations of residents and tenants alike,” says
Teppo Voutilainen, Head of New Services
and Solutions at KONE.
According to Voutilainen, failure to
keep up with the rapid pace of change has
significant implications for industry stake-
holders, in terms of competitiveness and bot-
tom line. In his opinion, a winning approach
means starting from a service design per-
spective, putting people first and creating a
deeper understanding of their needs. With
this in mind, KONE Residential Flow was
created and launched in 2017.
“From the beginning, we defined and
prioritized solution concepts and we con-
ducted several workshops in different coun-
tries, met with potential partners, and studied
42 Nordicum
our customers’ decision-making processes,”
Voutilainen explains.
Listen & Learn
At every step, a critical factor was asking
the right questions and listening to what cus-
tomers and end users were telling KONE
experts. “We knew right from the start that
simply throwing everything we had at the
project – in terms of engineering expertise
and technological innovation – was not the
right approach. Instead, our approach was
based on listening, understanding, and inter-
preting.”
When developing KONE Residen-
tial Flow, more than 200 developers, facil-
ity managers, and building residents around
the world were interviewed by the KONE
team, in order to understand their challenges
and needs related to people flow in residen-
tial environments.
“For example, we learned that many
people face challenges with simple tasks
like opening the front door when carrying
groceries or receiving deliveries; we also
learned that many people had missed out on
deliveries completely because they were not
at home to receive them.”
Capitalizing on all these little discov-
eries means that KONE Residential Flow
can, indeed, take the stress out of every-
day situations, making home life easier and
more convenient. “The solution is availa-
ble for both new and existing buildings,”
adds Voutilainen.
Perfecting People Flow
KONE has a strong track record in providing
the best possible ‘people flow’ experience.
“Good people flow happens when peo-
ple can move smoothly, safely, comfortably,
and without waiting,” Voutilainen sums up.
The people flow experience of a build-
ing begins at the point of arrival. From there,
the journey continues through the lobby and
then to the final destination through multiple
doors, spaces, halls and corridors.
“For building users, there is a strong
connection between the quality of people
flow and the overall quality of the build-
ing,” remarks Voutilainen.