Generational trends and changing consumer behavior are creating huge opportunities for proptech firms that offer immense customer value via operational agility, superior experiences, and sustainability. In 2020, proptech demonstrated how it can hugely help real estate owners, operators, and services companies deal with the aftermath of the pandemic. It helped operations teams reassure people on the frequency of disinfection, make them aware and engaged of operational steps taken, manage assets, schedules, and work remotely and proactively, and overall reduce operating costs and create efficiencies. This need for digital-led operations explains why Facilio, a homegrown proptech startup, with global offices and customers, increased its square footage under management by 50 per cent, post-Covid-19 pandemic by solving this problem.
Facilio believes that advances in artificial intelligence (AI), Internet of Things (IoT), and cloud-based software platforms, allow the industry to control costs a lot easier and keep a tight leash on expenses, workforce productivity, and energy goals more effectively. This, in turn, enables teams to address the changing well-being, occupant health, and environmental needs. Given the key role played by real estate in the UAE economy, the nation’s buildings and construction sector has embraced Proptech with extreme enthusiasm. With the obvious benefits of enhanced efficiency, greater profitability, and sustainability benchmarks, the UAE continues to greatly adopt smart building practices and data-led software tools across the entire spectrum of property operations and facilities management. The company has strong partnerships with the Arabian Gulf’s leading FM service providers, key industry players including Moro Hub, a wholly owned subsidiary of the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (Dewa), and reputed real estate developers and operators, including the 990,000sqft ICD Brookfield Place tower that launched amidst the pandemic deploying Facilio as its single-pane-of-glass connected buildings technology partner. Facilio’s deep understanding of evolving market needs has positioned the company perfectly to help its customers thrive in the post-pandemic economic scenario. Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic, Facilio invested heavily in strengthening data collection, integrations, and product capabilities that focused on outcomes of operational agility and efficiency. When Covid-19 hit, opportunities nearly doubled, putting the company on a path to hyper-growth.