Highlights / Key Facts:

 The new Smart Connected Buildings solution, Cisco’s latest emerging technology, aims to enable sustainable energy reduction and the future-proofing of facilities through a flexible integration of new technologies that help deliver energy efficiency and environmental stewardship for Smart+Connected Communities.

• This represents the first Emerging Technology business unit incubated from Cisco’s Globalisation Centre East in Bangalore, India. The business unit integrates technologies from Cisco’s acquisition of Santa Barbara, Calif.-based Richards-Zeta in January 2009 with Cisco networking technology and concurrently develops innovative software solutions for energy management.
• Sandeep Vij, vice president and general manager, leads the team out of the Globalisation Center East, reporting to Marthin De Beer, senior vice president of the Emerging Technologies Group.
• Smart Connected Buildings’ first solution, Cisco Network Building Mediator, provides an extensible architecture to allow building operation managers to easily monitor, measure and act on energy systems while adding renewable technologies such as solar, wind and fuel cells as well as energy-efficiency programs such as automated demand-response programs to reduce capital and operating expenditures.
• The Cisco Network Building Mediator communicates “southbound” with building systems using a variety of industry open-system protocols. It then converts the data to open XML/SOAP Services which connect “northbound” to applications, utilities, enterprise management systems and cloud services.
• The Cisco Network Building Mediator extends Cisco EnergyWise technology to deliver the most comprehensive business energy-management solution, providing energy monitoring, reporting and saving to more systems and devices in any building.
• Cisco also announced that more than 20 technology partners will join the Cisco Development Technology Program for the Mediator in bringing solutions and services to Smart+Connected Communities.
• In addition, Cisco plans to introduce an Authorized Technology Provider Program for channel partners and system integrators who will be supporting sales and services for customers.
• The Cisco Network Building Mediator is orderable now and is available in two configurations; the Cisco Network Building Mediator 2400 and the Cisco Network Building Mediator 4800. Pricing starts at USD $4995. (link)