Asset Management Series: A 4-Part Journey to Smarter, More Efficient Operations
Tesh Patel
Streamlining Building Technology for Smarter, More Profitable CRE Assets | Assessments | Strategic Advice | Managed Services
Operational technology (OT) asset management has become more than a back-office function—it’s a strategic lever for driving net operating income (NOI), improving tenant experience, and future-proofing portfolios. In this four-part blog series, we’ll break down the key capabilities that matter most and share actionable insights from the field.
Part 1: Efficiency – How streamlined OT asset management reduces costs, downtime, and complexity.
Part 2: AI – Using predictive analytics to move from reactive maintenance to proactive performance optimization.
Part 3: Integration – The power of connecting systems, data, and workflows into a single, reliable source of truth.
Part 4: Simplicity at Scale – How to maintain clarity and control as operations expand across multiple sites.
Why Asset Management Matters More Than Ever
The days of managing OT systems with spreadsheets, guesswork, and isolated platforms are over. Commercial real estate (CRE) leaders who embrace modern asset management strategies are driving measurable results—lower operational costs, improved equipment performance, and better tenant satisfaction.
This series will explore how a data-driven, tech-enabled approach to OT asset management can:
?
PART 1 - Maximizing Efficiency in OT Asset Management
The Efficiency Imperative in OT Asset Management
The commercial real estate landscape is evolving rapidly, requiring asset and portfolio managers to rethink how they manage their OT infrastructure.
With high interest rates, operational costs rising, and investors demanding better NOI performance, efficiency is no longer a luxury—it’s a financial and competitive necessity. Asset managers must optimize OT asset management to drive cost savings, enhance building performance, and future-proof portfolios against economic uncertainty.
This blog will explore how efficiency in OT asset management can drive cost savings, reduce downtime, and enhance building performance.
The Hidden Inefficiencies in OT Asset Management
CRE portfolios are built on complex, aging OT infrastructures that often lack a centralized, real-time view of asset inventory. Many asset and portfolio managers still rely on fragmented systems, manual spreadsheets, and siloed software solutions, leading to untracked equipment failures, higher operational costs, and reactive maintenance strategies. Labor shortages exacerbate the problem—CRE executives also cite a lack of skilled building engineers as a critical challenge, forcing overstretched teams to manage OT assets inefficiently.
Compounding these inefficiencies, third-party property managers frequently miss service-level agreements (SLAs), leaving asset managers without the service quality they’re paying for. Without automation and accountability, buildings operate with hidden inefficiencies that drain resources and degrade asset performance.
At the same time, the industry is flooded with PropTech startups pitching AI-driven decarbonization, predictive maintenance, and ESG reporting solutions. Yet, most of these technologies fail to deliver on their promises because of long implementation timelines and misalignment with existing systems. More often, CRE technology investments take more than 9-12 months to reach full deployment, often resulting in stalled adoption and wasted capital. Adding to the complexity, many IT teams mistakenly apply traditional IT cybersecurity frameworks to OT systems, exposing critical infrastructure like HVAC, elevators, and access control to cyber threats. The rapid rise in ransomware attacks on building systems highlights the urgency of addressing OT security as a distinct challenge rather than an IT afterthought.
With interest rates still high, operational costs rising, and investor pressure mounting on NOI, inefficiencies in OT asset management are no longer just operational hurdles—they’re direct financial risks. The CRE firms that thrive in this environment will be those that adopt automation for real-time asset visibility, implement OT-specific cybersecurity strategies, and demand performance-driven accountability from third-party managers. Efficiency isn’t just about cost-cutting—it’s about ensuring every asset in the portfolio is optimized for long-term value and resilience.
Strategies to Enhance Efficiency in OT Asset Management
Automated Asset Inventory & Monitoring: Gaining Real-Time Visibility
For asset and portfolio managers, having a clear and real-time view of OT assets is essential for operational efficiency and cost control. However, many organizations still rely on outdated spreadsheets and manual tracking, leading to inefficiencies, unexpected downtime, and unnecessary capital expenditures. Automating asset inventory and monitoring through Internet of Things (IoT)-enabled solutions can provide continuous visibility into asset performance without requiring additional headcount. Third-party firms specializing in turnkey OT asset management solutions can help streamline this process by auditing existing infrastructure, deploying sensor-based monitoring, and integrating data into a centralized system—allowing asset managers to make informed, real-time decisions.
?
Centralized Asset Management: Moving Beyond Dashboard Fatigue
The promise of a single pane of glass (SPOG) sounds appealing. Still, most building engineers and operators currently manage multiple platforms, dashboards, and vendor logins, creating data overload instead of actionable insights. Rather than adding another software layer, asset managers should focus on leveraging existing building systems while integrating key PropTech data through strategic application programming interface (API) connections. Middleware platforms and data aggregators can help pull critical insights into a unified interface, eliminating the need to log into multiple dashboards while ensuring that only relevant metrics—such as energy consumption, system performance, and predictive maintenance alerts—are surfaced. This approach allows for smarter, more efficient decision-making without adding unnecessary complexity or cost.
?
Predictive Maintenance & AI-driven Analytics: De-risking Adoption
Predictive maintenance has the potential to optimize repair schedules, reduce downtime, and extend asset lifespan, but many solutions in the market require long implementation cycles and uncertain ROI. Asset managers should focus on proven, high-impact AI use cases that can be integrated into existing maintenance workflows to minimize risk. For example, AI-driven fault detection can be applied to HVAC and critical OT assets to identify small issues before they escalate into costly failures. Additionally, service-based maintenance models, where vendors are accountable for performance and uptime, can help shift risk away from the asset owner while ensuring measurable efficiency gains.
By adopting practical automation strategies, consolidating operational data, and applying AI-driven maintenance solutions with a clear return on investment, asset managers can significantly enhance efficiency, reduce operational costs, and improve asset performance without unnecessary complexity.
?
The Business Case for OT Efficiency
Operational inefficiencies in OT asset management directly impact NOI and long-term asset value. Poorly tracked assets, reactive maintenance, and redundant energy usage inflate costs, while predictive maintenance and real-time monitoring can reduce failures by 30-50%, extend equipment life, and cut energy expenses by 10-20%. Asset managers can reduce operational waste, lower maintenance costs, and drive measurable ROI by shifting from manual oversight to automated, data-driven decision-making.
Beyond cost savings, efficiency is a key risk mitigation tool. As OT cyber threats rise, traditional IT security policies are often insufficient, leaving building systems vulnerable to breaches and operational failures. Adopting Zero-Trust principles—which enforce continuous authentication and network segmentation—helps prevent attacks from spreading and reduces downtime's financial and reputational risks. Additionally, insurers and corporate tenants increasingly demand OT security and operational resilience, making proactive efficiency strategies a competitive advantage in lease negotiations and asset valuation.
Efficiency isn’t just about cutting costs—it’s about future-proofing. Low-cost strategies, like standardized asset inventories and API-driven data integration, create quick wins without heavy capital investment. At the same time, mid-tier AI-driven fault detection improves uptime and reduces emergency repairs. Larger investments, such as portfolio-wide automation and cloud-enabled monitoring, position assets for long-term resilience. Asset managers can increase NOI today by implementing scalable efficiency solutions while building an adaptive, future-ready portfolio.
?
Actionable Next Steps for Asset & Portfolio Managers
OT inefficiencies are no longer just an operational burden—they are financial risks that impact NOI, tenant satisfaction, and long-term asset value. To stay competitive, asset and portfolio managers must shift from reactive management to a proactive, data-driven approach that maximizes efficiency, enhances security, and reduces unnecessary costs. The path forward starts with strategic, incremental improvements that drive measurable impact.
1.???? Conduct an OT asset inventory assessment to gain visibility into what assets you have, their condition, and how they are managed. Identifying inefficiencies is the first step toward optimizing operations.
2.???? Invest in centralized asset management strategies that consolidate critical insights, eliminating dashboard fatigue and ensuring asset data is actionable.
3.???? Implement predictive maintenance and automation to reduce downtime, extend asset lifecycles, and lower operational costs.
4.???? Collaborate with technology and service providers who understand the intersection of OT, cybersecurity, and real estate operations, ensuring practical and scalable solutions.
By taking these steps, asset managers can reduce costs, mitigate risk, and position their portfolios for long-term success—ensuring their buildings operate smarter, not harder.
How is your organization tackling OT asset management inefficiencies? Let’s discuss this in the comments!
Follow Intelligent Buildings for expert insights on OT asset management best practices and industry trends.