'Hot' products, trends that build future cities

Everything is starting to turn futuristic. From homes to roads and devices big and small, all are becoming intelligent. This, resulting to a faster-paced and more-convenient-and-efficient-than-ever style of living is the fulfilled promise of what are now known as smart and green cities. Jumping into this trend has many advantages, making everyday tasks a breeze for end-consumers and driving growth of building and smart home product innovators and importers.

Here are the biggest building industry-transforming trends, according to experts at Australia’s Green Cities conference held this March, plus must-source products growing in popularity due to these developments:

1. Preference for carbon-neutral buildings – Structures that have zero carbon emissions are gaining ground. In Australia, this is said to be the standard for all new buildings by 2030, and the country’s GBCA expects existing ones to comply by 2050. Energy-efficient edifices are also favored. With this, building materials with environment-friendly and energy-harnessing properties can be expected to be in-demand. There have also been moves in other countries that follow this trend. Makers are releasing low-carbon materials, and power-generating tiles and bricks.

2. Rise of augmented reality – AR is making waves this year and will remain interesting in the years ahead. Smart homes and buildings are blending what’s simulated and real for everyday applications. Just recently, an AR hub that adds virtual controls to a home became popular, indicating that AR is ready to go mainstream. For construction, AR is expected to give builders a virtual glimpse of what fixtures suit a building more and where to place them.

3. Adoption of sensing, data-sharing technologies – Cities of the future are envisioned to be able to keep track of the environment, people’s health and improve transportation. This explains why air-quality detectors and smart mirrors and hubs are now more integrated into buildings in many new ways. For instance, air sensors and purifiers are now put into doorbells and bulbs. Weather can be checked and cabs hailed through a mirror, and fitness activity progress can be monitored via a touch switch, both conveniently accessible on a wall.

4. Population becoming denser – As population grows, spaces need to be managed better. Solutions include having homes near workplaces and better transport infrastructure. This could explain why mobile and modular homes are in-demand. In the US, there is a new upgradeable prefab home that can change modular housing conventions, for it can be moved in and out easily from a fixed rack.

5. Making buildings healthy – An effort that is said to yield trillion dollars in revenue, buildings that support new technology for adequate lighting, insulation and ventilation are going to be trendy. The first has shown many advancements, as there have been a surplus of eye-friendly smart lights that adjust automatically to users’ routines and schedules rolled out in the market in the past months.

6. Growing food in urban spaces – Gardening is proving to be an interesting activity even if done indoors. Now people can grow flowers, herbs and crops with ease inside their homes or offices via mess-free autonomous smart hydroponic systems, planters and vertical gardens.