Felicite Moorman remembers receiving a call from a multifamily property manager whose building was struggling with its thermostat system. “For one thing, the system wasn’t designed for multifamily; for another thing, the system had very little property management control capability,” she recalls.
The year was 2013, and Moorman was CEO of BuLogics, which specializes in providing wireless solutions for the Internet of Things. Her company had just launched StratIS, a wireless access, energy, and automation control, whose app gives property owners and managers the ability to create setbacks on thermostats and heating systems.
In short order, StratIS has made an imprint on the market. In 2014, it established a partnership with Jonathan Rose Companies, a green real estate policy, development, project management and investment firm, through which StratIS installed its pilot systems. Last year, StratIS struck a partnership with the door hardware manufacturer Schlage, which had introduced its Schlage Control Smart Locks that are designed for multifamily property owners, and whose ENGAGE technology enables lock control from the cloud via mobile applications that are compatible with StratIS’s access platform.
By late November 2015, StratIS had at least one of its products in 72,000 multifamily and hotel units in between 250 and 300 buildings. Moorman tells BD+C that between 14,000 and 20,000 of those units are student housing built by American Campus Communities. StratIS’s products also found their way into student housing developed and managed by Campus Apartments.
StratIS markets its software through distributors, integrators, and installers. “We give them something extra to sell,” says Moorman. She adds that StratIS’s products are relatively easy to install in new builds or renovations, with minimal resident disruption. “We precommission everything, which cuts down on the [complexity] of installation. I also test everything on my seven-year-old, and if she can’t use it, we try to figure out what happened.”
Property managers have the option of allowing renters to download StratIS’s thermostat-control app as part of their lease agreement.
Moorman says the next horizon for StratIS could be key cards, although she concedes there is far greater potential liability using this kind of technology for access into multifamily homes than in hotels. Longer term, Moorman sees opportunities for StratIS developing access- and HVAC-control products for the single-family housing market, which she acknowledges will be more competitive.
Related Stories
AEC Tech | Oct 5, 2021
EarthCam Builds On its Connectivity with Autodesk Construction Cloud
Premiering new visual verification features for Autodesk Build and BIM 360
AEC Tech | Sep 21, 2021
A new webtool follows ConTech from incubation to application and beyond
MIT and JLL have created Tech Tracker to help real estate professionals see what’s hot now and what might be.
Architects | Aug 5, 2021
Lord Aeck Sargent's post-Katerra future, with LAS President Joe Greco
After three years under the ownership of Katerra, which closed its North American operations last May, the architecture firm Lord Aeck Sargent is re-establishing itself as an independent company, with an eye toward strengthening its eight practices and regional presence in the U.S.
Architects | Aug 5, 2021
Lord Aeck Sargent's post-Katerra future, with LAS President Joe Greco
After three years under the ownership of Katerra, which closed its North American operations last May, the architecture firm Lord Aeck Sargent is re-establishing itself as an independent company, with an eye toward strengthening its eight practices and regional presence in the U.S.
AEC Tech | Jul 14, 2021
Bjarke Ingels Group and UNStudio invest in SpaceForm, a virtual workspace for architects
Squint/Opera developed the platform in 2018.
AEC Tech | Jun 30, 2021
Orro Launches New Integration with Sonos, Providing Seamless In-Wall Control for Sonos Speakers
With the new integration, customers can use the dynamic display on Orro’s smart light switches to control their favorite audio content on their Sonos speakers.
AEC Tech | Jun 9, 2021
Orro Announces Unified Smart Home App
Orro app now provides control of other smart home devices from leading professional and consumer device manufacturers.
AEC Tech | Jun 8, 2021
FARO Expands Digital Twin Product Suite - Acquires HoloBuilder Inc.
FARO Technologies, a global leader of 3D measurement, imaging, and realization solutions for the 3D Metrology, AEC (Architecture, Engineering & Construction), and Public Safety Analytics markets, today announced the acquisition of HoloBuilder, Inc.
AEC Tech | May 27, 2021
New Work Zone Cam Pro Delivers 33% More Detail for Time-Lapse
Work Zone Cam, a leading provider of professional jobsite construction camera services, premiered its latest camera, which increases image resolution from 18 to 24 megapixels. The additional image detail helps track construction progress more accurately and results in higher resolution time-lapses for construction documentation.
Digital Twin | May 24, 2021
Digital twin’s value propositions for the built environment, explained
Ernst & Young’s white paper makes its cases for the technology’s myriad benefits.