Author: Peggy Smedley

With the cost of electric bills and energy rising, many homeowners are seeking out ways to reduce consumption. One area we can save energy is with the right lighting, which accounts for roughly 15% of an average home’s electricity use. Perhaps one of the best ways to save energy costs each year is by switching to LED (light-emitting diode) lighting. The U.S. DOE (Dept. of Energy) suggests the average household can save roughly $225 in energy costs per year by making the switch. In fact, it suggests this is one of the fastest ways to cut energy bills. Residential LEDs…

Last week, at Microsoft’s Build event, the technology company made many big announcements such as Project Volterra, Microsoft Intelligent Data Platform, and Microsoft Dev Box, among many others. I covered these in-depth yesterday on The Peggy Smedley Show and shared my thoughts about the impact it will have. Perhaps one of the best ways to explore this is with a case study, and since our topic of discussion for the month of May is healthcare, let’s look at one example. We all know the COVID-19 pandemic has exasperated the healthcare industry. Some stats suggest more than 6 million people in…

Is the housing market still heating up or is it slowing down? Will it continue picking up speed? Or will it grind to a halt? The most recent NAHB (National Assn. of Home Builders)/Wells Fargo HMI (housing market index) points to some interesting trends. The HMI is based on a monthly survey of NAHB members, and it is designed to take the pulse of the single-family housing market into account. The survey asks respondents to rate market conditions for various components. Here is a more in-depth look at how it works. The index is a weighted average of three separate…

Summer is here in the states! As the summer temperatures heat up, people want to stay cool—and there are several ways to do that sustainably in our homes. Air conditioning is one of the clearest ways to cool your home—but it uses a large amount of electricity, and with the price of utilities rising, so too are the costs associated with running the AC. Home air conditioning costs homeowners more than $29 billion annually, according to the Center for Climate and Energy Solutions. In warmer climates, as much as 20-50% of your annual energy use can go to cooling your…

As we move forward into greater digital transformation and leveraging AI (artificial intelligence), companies are trying to decipher what works well and simply, what doesn’t. This is precisely what Intel has uncovered in a survey and shared in its presentation: Harvesting Value from AI Investments. Here is what I have gleaned learned from its research. Roughly 72% are actively engaging with AI today, but few are systematically building a solid foundation for AI value. Roughly a quarter have a company-wide vision and strategy around AI in their organization. Less than that are experimenting around where AI adds value; have data…

While many areas of construction continue to surge, one is beginning to show some signs of weakness. Certainly, higher interest rates, rising inflation, and the looming recession are factors for all sectors of construction, but so far, they have not impacted all sectors of construction to a high degree. Ultimately, construction companies will need to adjust business processes and technology adoption, as we move further into 2022. The numbers tell an interesting story. Total construction starts rose 3% in April to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of $945.8 billion. Breaking it out by segment, nonresidential building starts rose 6% and…

Solar panels are a great option to help reduce emissions as homes are expected to become the single largest consumer of electricity, surpassing industry, and therefore the largest contributor of carbon dioxide emissions by 2050—but there is still one big hurdle to overcome. On this blog, we have explained in-depth what solar is and how it can help reduce emissions, but this technology—like much else in the smart and sustainable home—comes with a cost. Cost is perhaps one of the biggest disadvantages of solar energy to this day, next to the fact that it can be dependent on weather in…

With an objective to improve people’s lives, the planet, and enable economic growth, efficient power operation and energy optimization are primary objectives for IoT (Internet of Things) products intended for many vertical markets including utilities, manufacturing, automotive, healthcare, construction, transportation, infrastructure, and more. In fact, the IoT device market is expected to grow to more than 24 billion devices by 2025 in both consumer and enterprise applications. A new whitepaper from MIPI Alliance, digs into this topic and identifies how product architects and designers can use a selected set of features to achieve these design goals. Let’s take a look.…

When a connected device breaks, what do you do? In the past, many people have opted to replace, but in today’s circular world, repair is becoming a more viable option. This offers clear benefits: saved money and a saved planet. Electronics are one of the fastest growing waste streams in the world, and nearly 70% of all the emissions associated with personal computing devices arise during production. Naturally, if we are able to extend the lifespan of the device through repair, then we ultimately reduce harmful toxins and emissions into our environment. Let’s take a look at what is happening…

Collaboration often leads in innovation. If we want digital transformation to prosper in construction, then we need all the generations to come together to identify how to make that happen. The industry also needs knowledge sharing about the tools of the trade, so to speak. This is why my interest was piqued when a new survey crossed by desk. CraftJack recently conducted a survey to uncover which generation is the handiest. The company surveyed 1,000 people across four generations:  Gen Z (18-25), Millennials (26-41), Gen X (42-57), and Baby Boomers (58-76) to see which generation is the “handiest” when it…