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Edge Computing is rapidly becoming integrated with the concept of future cities as it optimizes internet devices and web applications by bringing computing closer to the data source. The technology will be a key development across industries in the coming year. And just like other technology aspects, the commercial real estate sector will need to catch up on the trend.

Edge computing delivers a range of new opportunities to buildings and property managers. It can assist in significantly reducing the bandwidth required to operate smart building deployments. The technology is particularly germane to support in-building and campus networks, because individuals in the building or campus may need specific applications or content.

Moreover, in-building wireless systems are now being financed by third parties and then leased back to network operators. Thus, the building or campus will likely have secured data center space that can be adequate for the Edge Computing equipment.

Why Edge Computing?

Edge computing accumulates data generated by smart devices or IoT and then processes it closer to home, instead of sending it far away for processing. It results in a closer, more instant and localized data, enabling users to store content and process applications locally.

The technology channel could be almost anything, a laptop, a mobile phone, an application, a mobile tower, or even a car. The data collected gets processed in a micro data center, right on the property. According to IDC, the micro data centers process and store the data in less than 100 square feet.

Moreover, deploying edge computing is not as simple as developing a data center or setting up a new Wi-Fi network. Since the technology integrates processing resources with network capabilities and virtualized architectures, specific skills are needed. Also, simply shifting a data center closer to the edge of the network is not adequate to get full advantages or capabilities of edge computing that optimizes processing, network, and virtualization into one architecture.

Deploying Edge Computing on Buildings

Edge data centers start to evolve next to high-device density locations like airports and stadiums, where data transmission requirements are high. Vapor IO, for instance, is a company that provides edge computing and edge data centers, and cloud provider Packet that are offering 5G-as-a-Service built on a pay as you go capable infrastructure and connectivity solution for edge locations.

To successfully deploy, an Edge Computing solution must be cost-efficient; flexible and scalable, able to support deployment at local sites or street level or in a large data center; secure; able to deliver local analysis; and able to perform effectively that can primarily enhance the experience for the end-user.