Siemens has added another piece to its Building Technologies Division, the third significant acquisition for that group in the past couple of months. This time it is acquiring Building Robotics Inc., a maker of workplace experience apps including Comfy, which allows a workspace to respond to personal preferences of workers while also providing analytics for building operators.
Siemens announced its acquisition of J2 Innovations in May, followed by Enlighted two days later. Both are expected to be major contributors to the Building Technologies offering of technologies for automating commercial building operations.
Building Robotics, founded in 2012 and headquartered in Oakland, CA, established itself by developing a simple-to-use app that enables people to take control of their environment, an app called Comfy. The app directly integrates with existing building automation, IT networks and IoT systems to provide on-demand control and smart automation.
Building Robotics Inc. will be a wholly-owned subsidiary of Siemens Industry and continue to operate as a vendor-agnostic platform provider. The two co-founders, CEO Andrew Krioukov and CTO Stephen Dawson-Haggerty, will remain in their current positions leading Building Robotics. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
“This move further strengthens our leadership position in smart buildings,” said Matthias Rebellius, CEO of Siemens Building Technologies. “With the Comfy app we will bring a consumer-like experience to commercial buildings that simplifies the interaction with buildings to increase employee productivity and engagement.”