Student housing provides a unique living experience. On the one hand, student housing is partially residential, with students living on the premises most of the year, but not all year round. On the other hand, it’s partly commercial, in that residents are temporary, have private rooms but share common areas, and require a range of services and amenities throughout their stay.
Providing those services and amenities, of course, comes with a cost, so the challenge that student housing managers face is reducing those costs without compromising resident experience. And one of the most direct ways they can do that is by installing smart thermostats. Indeed, the right smart thermostat will not only reduce energy consumption costs, but they can actually improve guest experience by offering a more seamless resident experience.
What is a Smart Thermostat?
In its simplest terms, a smart thermostat is a thermostat that is programmable. Some smart thermostats can also be network connected with occupancy sensors, and adjust heating and cooling settings around real time occupancy needs. And some smart thermostats even allow property managers to access and adjust their HVAC system remotely.
The point is that not all smart thermostats are created equal. And student housing properties require more of a commercial-grade solution rather than consumer-grade one (such as those offered by Nest and Ecobee).
Specifically, commercial grade smart thermostats offer a range of features that consumer options lack, and give student housing managers much more control over their energy consumption — such as occupancy sensors, advanced humidity control, night occupancy mode, flexible setbacks, and energy savings reports. In other words, the right commercial-grade smart thermostats are low-cost infrastructure upgrades that significantly lower energy costs.
Smart Thermostat Features for your Student Housing Residence
Just as not all smart thermostats are created equally, different thermostats come equipped with different features. And some features, put simply, are more important than others. From air quality management and machine learning capabilities to smart HVAC compatibility, understanding these features will help you choose a smart thermostat that not only optimizes energy efficiency but also enhances resident comfort.
Programmable Settings
Climate control is an essential part of student housing management, ensuring resident satisfaction and comfort. Whether for heating or cooling, smart thermostats optimize energy consumption without compromising student comfort. Indeed, commercial smart thermostats can be programmed according to peak occupancy times, and respond to real-time fluctuations in student occupancy patterns.
Best of all, our smart energy management thermostats give student housing operators the ability to simultaneously manage multiple units at the same time. Students, on the other hand, can easily adjust their smart thermostat settings in their private units according to their own preferences and daily patterns.
Occupancy Sensors
While smart thermostats can be programmed around daily patterns, it is, in fact, the occupancy sensors that allow them to respond to real-time fluctuations in a room’s actual occupancy. Our occupancy sensors integrate seamlessly with our smart thermostats, as well as many third-party lighting systems. Indeed, Verdant’s sensor network reduces the average amount of heat needed for buildings where unitary HVAC is not available by placing temperature and humidity sensors in each unit.
These occupancy sensors then report temperature and humidity data (i.e. peak demand loads, historical thermodynamics, local weather conditions, etc.) to an online platform, giving student housing managers the ability to continuously optimize energy efficiency based on real-time changes in student occupancy.
Remote Access
Smart thermostats have not only changed the way student housing managers optimize energy consumption, but from where. Commercial smart thermostats come equipped with remote access features, ensuring student housing operators can monitor and adjust temperatures remotely via smartphone apps, tablets, and voice-activated devices.
Put simply, with remote management capabilities, student housing managers can manage energy consumption from anywhere, ensuring that all climate control needs are operating at peak efficiency. Of course, remote access also enables staff to quickly respond to maintenance alerts, addressing issues before they escalate or lead to critical system failure.
Machine Learning Capabilities
Remote access features are just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to optimizing energy consumption with smart thermostats. In fact, our smart thermostats with occupancy sensors collect comprehensive data on peak demand loads, historical thermodynamics, and local weather conditions.
This data is then transformed into actionable insights by sophisticated machine learning algorithms and used to continuously improve energy efficiency throughout the year in real time. In simpler terms, these energy management smart thermostats not only provide student housing managers with the data they need, but the tools to automate the entire process.
HVAC Compatibility
Just as not all smart thermostats are built the same, not all EMS smart thermostats will be compatible with your HVAC system. Some commercial smart thermostat systems are only compatible with PTACs from the same manufacturer.
Of course, smart thermostats that are cross-compatible with 3rd party HVAC systems offer student housing managers newfound flexibility and convenience. This ensures they ultimately select a smart thermostat solution that best fits their needs. Verdant energy management smart thermostats, for instance, offer unmatched compatibility with HVAC systems, including PTACs, Heat Pumps, FCU’s, Split units, and more advanced units like VRFs, VRVs, and VRPs.
Analytics Reporting
As the old adage goes, data trumps opinion. And student housing energy management is no different. Verdant’s smart thermostats and energy management system, Verdant Plus, provide comprehensive reports on energy consumption trends, giving student housing managers unparalleled visibility.
Of course, these energy management reports typically include personalized recommendations and energy-saving tips based on actual data and insights, rather than guesswork. This ultimately allows student housing managers to make strategic, data-driven decisions, lowering operational and overhead costs.
Smart Thermostat Benefits for your Student Housing Residence
The benefits of installing a smart HVAC thermostat in your student housing residence are not limited solely to reducing energy consumption. In fact, the sum of those benefits greatly outweighs the initial investment, giving student housing operators the ability to not only lower operational costs, but also improve resident experience.
Cost Savings
Smart thermostats help student housing operators significantly reduce operating costs, streamlining energy consumption. Over time, smart HVAC thermostats learn residents’ preferences and daily patterns, and automatically adjust heating and cooling based on real-time occupancy.
This, in turn, results in significantly lower HVAC runtimes, as well as overall energy waste. Indeed, with Verdant’s smart HVAC thermostats student housing operators can achieve substantial energy savings without compromising guest comfort.
Enhanced Comfort
Smart thermostats also play an essential role in improving student comfort, delivering a seamless resident experience. Our smart energy management thermostats do so in a two-fold way.
For one, students can customize their smart thermostat settings in private units based on their daily occupancy patterns. Secondly, smart HVAC thermostats automatically adjust heating and cooling in common areas based on real time fluctuations in occupancy and historical thermodynamics. This ensures no space is overheated or overcooled when unoccupied.
Ease of Use
As their name suggests, smart thermostats get their name from their intelligent, user-friendly features that benefit student housing operators and residents alike. Indeed, student housing managers can seamlessly manage smart thermostat settings and reports remotely, simultaneously managing multiple properties at the same time.
Students, on the other hand, can enjoy the simplicity of customizing temperature settings within their private units, featuring an intuitive smart thermostat interface. Essentially, the “smart” in smart thermostats refers not just to their advanced technology, but also to how easy they are to use.
Reduced Carbon Footprint
Last but certainly not least, smart thermostats help student living communities reduce their environmental impact, significantly lowering greenhouse gas emissions and carbon footprint. And beyond creating a more sustainable living environment, these smart energy management thermostats help student housing managers reach their ESG targets.
This, in turn, results in increased access to more strategic financing opportunities, attracting new investors. Commitment to sustainability has also proven to be a pivotal factor for residents when looking for student accommodation. In fact, according to a 2023 survey by the Princeton Review, 67% of prospective applicants say a college or university’s commitment to environmental issues would affect their decision to apply or attend.
Why Choose Verdant’s Smart Thermostats?
Of course, there are smart thermostat options for just about every commercial property, from student living communities and senior residences to hotels and multifamily properties. And much like how every living community has their own climate control needs, student housing operators can choose between a variety of smart thermostat options.
Indeed, it is essential to select a smart energy management thermostat that best reflects your needs, such as Verdant’s ZX Smart Thermostat and VX Smart Thermostat. After all, the right smart thermostat not only streamlines energy consumption, but also improves guest comfort.
Verdant’s smart thermostats offer student housing managers a plug-and-play solution, integrating seamlessly with third-party systems, including occupancy sensors. Join industry-leading partners and learn how our smart HVAC thermostats can automate and optimize your energy costs, and much more.
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