white paper
In the Footsteps of the "Giants" - Smart Working Environments for SMEs

Wired or Wireless:
Which is Better Suited for a Networked Building?
By Graham Martin, Chairman & CEO EnOcean Alliance and Marketa Sidlikova M.Sc. Fin.
Intelligent working environments with needs-based regulation of temperature, air quality
and lighting can have a positive effect on the comfort and well-being of employees,
increasing their motivation and productivity. What large companies do in their SmartSpaces is now becoming increasingly easier to do on a small scale. The leverage here is theuse of existing smart building functionalities. The hardware alone however does not makea building intelligent. It depends on the type of networking: wired or wireless? A new study
by the Technical University of Applied Sciences Rosenheim compares the common
standards KNX and EnOcean in different scenarios and the results applied to intelligent
commercial spaces.
Employees who feel good work better, are healthier and more productive. Larger companies
in particular have understood this important connection. They rely on intelligent office space– so-called smart spaces – and sensor-based infrastructure management. These collectsensor-generated building condition data and use it for adjustments or analysis. This allows
important factors influencing employee productivity and office hygiene – temperature, airquality, lighting conditions and cleanliness – to be monitored and controlled according to thenumber of people in the building and the ambient conditions. Smart Spaces form an interface
between people and their work environment. They complement the physical workspace witha virtual component – with positive effects on the well-being and productivity of theemployees.
What is increasingly being implemented on a large scale can also be implemented on a smallscale. For the first steps towards intelligent buildings, SMEs can use smart building
functionalities that are easy to install or retrofit and thus upgrade commercial spaces, offices
or practices.

Different Standards
Digital networking is the prerequisite for intelligent buildings as it is what enables theindividual products to communicate smoothly. This can be done in two different ways, withor without wireless technology. In addition to proprietary solutions from individual
manufacturers, there are also open standards for both variants: KNX (wired) and EnOcean(wireless) are each representative in their segment.

white paper
KNX (Konnex) is a widely used wired bus system for building automation. As a further
development of the EIB (European Installation Bus), KNX is an open, manufacturerindependent standard that is supported by a large number of manufacturers. As astandardized standard, KNX leaves a lot of scope for design and is considered to be particularly
secure.
EnOcean was defined in March 2012 by the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC)
as a global wireless standard (ISO / IEC 14543-3-10) for decentralized building automation. Inthe meantime, more than a million buildings have such radio networks. The EnOcean
ecosystem of self-powered wireless sensor solutions currently consists of 5,000 productvariants based on 1,500 basic products. The products can be combined with one anotherusing standardized interoperable sensor profiles.

Wired or Wireless in the Intelligent Building?
The study1 by Julia Winkler (B.Eng.) and Prof. Dr. Michael Kroedel compares intelligent areasof different sizes based on KNX or EnOcean technology in two equipment variants with regard
to costs, sustainability, health and well-being. In both cases, a conventional building without
intelligent networking serves as a reference guide.
In detail the study evaluates:• A one-room area with 42.3 m2 and a total of 33 or 42 products (basic or full equipment)• A medium area with 83.5 m2 and a total of 70 or 89 products• A large area of 215.2 m2 and a total of 162 or 186 products
The equipment in conventional buildings is based on the international standard DIN 18015RAL-RG678 for the installation of electrical systems in (residential) buildings (three-starcomfort equipment). The differentiation of the smart building variants is based on previous
internal university research results. The basic equipment includes typical entry-level functions
for comfort, safety and energy-saving. In addition to the basics, further lighting, heating andsecurity functions are included in the full equipment versions.
The cost calculation for the individual equipment options is based on a standardized
calculation aid for electrical and information technology trades (status 2020) as well as thecurrent publically available product catalogues from representative providers such as Hager(for KNX) and Eltako (for EnOcean).

1Winkler, J. (2021). Comparison between KNX and EnOcean using the example of room automation installations with regard tocosts and ecological aspects as well as taking into account a user-oriented requirement profile. (Bachelor thesis). Technical
University of Rosenheim, Germany.

white paper
Smart Costs - Wireless is Lower Cost in Comparison
A comparison of the conventional installation with the smart equipment reveals anunsurprising picture: Smart costs initially more. According to the study, the surcharge for theelectrical installation is between 64% in the one-room area with basic equipment based on
EnOcean and 385% in the medium area based on KNX2.

When comparing the smart building variants “wired” (KNX) or “wireless” (EnOcean), wirelessis significantly lower in costs. With comparable functionality, the difference is 20 to 30percent. This applies to all buildings and equipment variants in the study. This is due to thehigher expense of cabling and the cost of the wired devices and their installation.

In contrast, maintenance-free wireless sensors require neither mains power nor batteries.
Thanks to energy harvesting technology, they collect their energy from the environment(kinetic energy, light, or temperature differences). Wireless sensors can be simply placed
wherever they are needed. This saves time and money during installation and operation andat the same time enables quick and easy retrofitting in existing buildings.

2Overall, it should be noted that with KNX in all variants, in addition to material and installation, there are also costs for ETS (engineeringtool software) and license fees.

white paper
What about Electro-Smog in Wireless Smart Buildings?
The radiation exposure is 700 times lower than that of WLAN or Bluetooth connections and1.6 million times lower than conventional smartphones. The so-called SAR (SpecificAbsorption Rate) is the decisive here, indicating the maximum amount of transmission power
the human body can absorb.
Conclusion
The intelligently networked area initially costs more. But these investments are well
worthwhile in the medium and long term for SMEs in terms of increased comfort and wellbeing as well as lower energy costs. The installation costs of the wireless smart spaces areup to one-third less than the equivalent wired version. They also score points in terms offlexibility and environmental protection.