On February 4, 2015, ESD hosted an in-depth discussion at Chicago's Gleacher Center on today's technology trends and the impact they have in the workplace.
ESD's CEO Raj Gupta opened the discussion with a brief presentation on how the growing presence of technology in the workplace is changing what is expected and required from our workplace infrastructures. This influence bleeds into the cost structure of design projects as we see significant increases in the percentage of MEP / Technology infrastructure costs as part of the total build-out cost. In turn, we must rethink our approach to the design process.
ESD's Technology Consultant Nick Lawrence gave a presentation on what a typical day in the life of an employee might look like, emphasizing how often we rely on seamless and secure technology in today's mobile work envirnoment.
The event wrapped up with a panel discussion, led by ESD President Kurt Karnatz, on the various ways technology is changing the way we think about space, place, and time. Our panelists were ESD's Technology Practice Leader Zac House; Workplace Solutions Practice Leader Nathan Syndacker; and Controls Engineer / Smart Buildings Consultant Robert Knight.