Work kicks off on one of world’s biggest smart building projects for Expo 2020

Dubai: Work has commenced on one of the world’s largest installations of smart building technologies for the Expo 2020 in Dubai, it has been announced.

In a move that supports Dubai’s smart city initiative, Siemens will digitally connect more than 130 structures at the site through digital solutions that boost energy efficiency, comfort, safety and security.

The company will also digitally monitor and manage essential functions of the 137 buildings  spread across the 4.38-kilometre venue through its cloud-based energy analytics platform, Siemens Navigator.

The smart technologies will be installed across each of the Expo’s thematic districts (Opportunity, Mobility and Sustainability), at the Thematic Pavilions, most country pavilions, and at the Dubai Exhibition Centre.

The mega event expects to attract 25 million visitors between October 2020 and April 2021, with 70 per cent of the visitors projected to come from outside the UAE

For the event’s giant smart building project, Siemens will use sensors, analytics and its digital building management system to monitor and control functions such as air conditioning, energy usage, lighting, lifts, air quality and fire alarms.

“Connecting 137 buildings from a single site, it will be one of the world’s largest installations of the cloud system, giving operators visibility of the whole site and using data analytics to monitor energy usage during the Expo,” Siemens said in a statement.

The data collected will be used by a command and control centre located in each thematic district to reduce energy usage, ensure comfortable environments for visitors and participants, and maintain maximum levels of safety and security.

“Innovation is at the heart of World Expos and the UAE. Coupled with Dubai’s ambitious plans to be a pioneer for smart city technology, we are delighted that through our partnership with Siemens, Expo 2020 Dubai will become a world-leading showcase for the potential of smart cities,” Mohammed Alhashmi, Senior Vice President – Innovation and Future Technology, Expo 2020 Dubai

Markus Strohmeier, Senior Executive Vice President – Building Technologies Division, Siemens Middle East said Expo 2020 is creating the “most digitised and connected” World Expo in the event’s 167-year history.

“And we will support this with data-driven infrastructure for sustainability, safety and security,” he said.

“With more than 25 million visits expected, Expo 2020 Dubai is the largest event ever staged in the Arab world, and a global benchmark of how smart infrastructure will form the foundation of our future cities. I’m proud that Siemens is playing a major role in digitising this internationally significant event.”

After the Expo 2020, Siemens’ smart building technologies will continue to be used at the site, as part of District 2020, the integrated city that will continue to connect, create and innovate. Siemens had earlier announced plans to set up a global logistics headquarters as a key element of the Expo site’s legacy.

Siemens has been a regular participant in World Expos since exhibiting its pointer telegraph at the very first, in London in 1851. In Paris in 1937, Siemens equipped the German Pavilion with extensive illumination and, in 1967, it supplied infrastructure to the entire fairground in Montreal.