Johnson Controls Opens Innovation Center at National University of Singapore

Johnson Controls opened the $37 million OpenBlue Innovation Center at the National University of Singapore in September of 2020. Located in the School of Design and Environment's SDE4 building, the 2,600-sf facility is a living laboratory for the development of customizable, contact-free applications built on Johnson Controls' unifying digital technology suite, OpenBlue. The center will accommodate research on the use of a common configuration language that integrates core building systems with behavioral, wellness, and spatial data to create new solutions for safe, sustainable, and connected environments. Integrated sensors will enable researchers to better understand the effect of technology on well-being in indoor spaces. Overhead ventilation will be monitored to enable the development of airflow strategies that promote occupant health, with smart furniture providing insights on user alertness levels.

The six-story, 92,000-sf SDE4 building opened in January of 2019. The net-zero teaching and research facility features a rooftop solar farm with 1225 panels, a hybrid cooling system, and a narrow floorplate to optimize passive ventilation and natural lighting. The entire campus of the National University of Singapore will serve as a testbed for the OpenBlue Innovation Center's pioneering solutions.