Internet of things and community of owners in Spain

There is no doubt that technology will change the way of living and managing communities of owners. However, no technology will prevent you from having to continue participating in tedious general meetings, nevertheless technology may help streamline many common tasks in the community.

If we already use connected devices and apps to perform all kinds of management, such as paying bills, making video conferences, making purchases, communicating with friends and family why not use those same technologies in the community of owners?

The reality is that all these innovations come slowly to this environment, but they are here, and will lead to a small revolution in the relationship between neighbours, community managers (administrador) and service providers.

IOT will change our relation with the community administrator

According to the tucomunidad.com platform, there are several technologies that will soon be used in communities of owners. For example, online payments. The use of platforms that allow automatic and secure payment and collection of community fees will be popularized between owners and administrators. It is an ideal solution to solve the problem for payments from expats, because it avoids cash payments.

Online incident management can also be very interesting. Communicating with the administrator can sometimes be an 'impossible mission'. In fact, administrators use three fifths of their workday answering calls and messages from neighbours who inform them about a problem, according to tucomunidad.com.

Online notification for owners

The notification of online incidents is agile and, in addition, allows the rest of neighbours to know that they have already communicated and that they are taking timely action. This benefits both the owners and the administrators, who can devote their time in solving the problem or doing other tasks. Access may be granted to the platform to service providers plumbers, lifts maintenance staff, electricians, gardeners, cleaners, so that they receive an instant warning via email or by using any other communication platform obtaining prompt action on the problem.

Intelligent access control systems

Another modernization may come from the implementation of intelligent access control systems. The new technologies allow neighbours not to depend on common keys to be able to enter the urbanization or even to their own house, resorting to systems like scanners of fingerprints or of retina or by means of NFC technology, for example.

The problem of forgetting the keys at home and having to pay a fortune to the emergency locksmith would be over.

The Internet of Things will also contribute to maintenance. To place sensors within buildings will allow the sending of data about air quality, relative humidity, amount of light etc. And even adventure that it will be usual for the technician who comes to diagnose and fix a fault without  anybody having to call them.

Drones to the rescue

In larger communities, the use of drones and other unmanned vehicles can perform surveillance and maintenance tasks. There is no need to have a guard having to go around in a patrol car using lots of petrol. They can do the same job from an office, the drone can do that job. They could perform 24/7 surveillance tasks, as well as take pictures of faults that may go unchecked due to its awkward location high up in the facade or on the roofs, detect thermal or fluids leaks etc.

Another interesting aspect is the online management of the reservation of common spaces. Many communities have multipurpose premises for the use of neighbours, paddle tennis courts, etc. An internet platform can help expedite the negotiations, offering information about free time and allowing early booking.

Finally, even if general meetings are here to stay, technology could change the way it is carried out. In the future it may not have to be necessary to be physically present, streaming meetings, including online voting systems for making decisions may be the future.

IOT here to stay

IOT can anticipate the community maintenance manager equipment failures and avoid unscheduled downtime. Analysing streaming data to quickly assess conditions, recognize warning signs, and preemptively service equipment before costly repairs are needed.

According to a study carried out by Vodafone, 28% of organizations have already adopted IOT. Other 35% plan to launch their projects in less than a year, and more than three four-quarters of companies consider that IOT will be "key" to success future of any organization in its sector.

Therefore, the important question now is not whether a community of owners should use IOT or not, but when should they do it.