Selwood Housing has embarked on a pilot project with Aico to install the company’s HomeLink environmental sensors and gateways in 100 of its properties.
Monitoring environmental conditions for improved living
The primary goal of Selwood Housing’s pilot project was to enhance its customers’ well-being by leveraging advanced IoT technology to monitor and manage environmental conditions within their properties. Aico’s HomeLink environmental sensors provide data on temperature, humidity and indoor air quality, offering insights for safer and more comfortable living environments.
The pilot project comprised 100 properties selected to represent a cross-section of housing archetypes that had previously been identified with environmental risks such as damp and mould.
Expert support – sharing the genius
Before installation, Aico’s regional specification manager for the south, Peter Price-Higgott delivered Aico’s free, FIA CPD-certified Expert Installer training to Selwood Housing’s team, teaching the installation and commissioning processes. This ensured that the sensors were installed correctly and the data would be accurate and reliable.
Peter Price-Higgott, regional specification manager, Aico, said, “It was great to offer our support to Selwood Housing through our comprehensive training programme because education and ‘sharing the genius’ are one of the cornerstones of our business. It was also great to get back to my routes, visiting the initial properties alongside the engineers. This engagement allowed us to provide invaluable support during the installation process, ensuring a seamless completion of works.”
The Ei1025 environmental sensors were installed in key areas such as wet rooms, communal rooms and kitchens. The installation process involved the integration of Aico’s HomeLink gateway, enabling communication between the sensors and the cloud-based HomeLink portal.
Charlie Worby, electrical supervisor, Selwood Housing, said, “The HomeLink gateway and environmental sensors were easy to install, and the commissioning app was user-friendly. From my experience, our customers seemed happy because it was a positive step towards addressing their concerns.”
A commitment to continuous improvement
Post-installation training was provided to surveyors and members of the management team at Selwood Housing to help them navigate the system. The HomeLink portal gives Selwood Housing’s team easy access to real-time data and customisable notifications, ensuring that the right department responds to each specific need. This level of control and transparency ensures efficient resource allocation and timely interventions.
The training also covered the system’s features and explored how data is turned into actionable insights, risk scores and damp- and mould-risk intelligence.
Jordan Toulson, head of product, HomeLink, said, “When Selwood Housing’s team first started using the Portal, they said that it could be difficult to understand which properties needed prioritising. As a result, we developed a bespoke solution, a ‘property insight scores’ report, which provides a sortable, filterable 0-100 score for each room and home, helping Selwood Housing and other housing providers across the country to prioritise their workloads.”
The pilot has provided positive outcomes, benefiting both Selwood Housing and its customers:
- Improved customer well-being – With real-time monitoring capabilities, the HomeLink environmental sensors contributed to improved indoor air quality, helping Selwood Housing’s customers create healthier living spaces.
- Enhanced safety – Linking Aico’s fire and carbon monoxide (CO) alarms to the gateway has given residents on the pilot scheme enhanced safety. This provides an extra layer of safety by alerting Selwood Housing instantly of any potential hazards, such as fire and CO activations, tampering events, system faults and essential maintenance.
- Proactive property management – The actionable insights from the HomeLink portal allow Selwood Housing to be proactive in problem-solving, leading to efficient resource allocation and cost savings.
Robert McFerran, planned improvement project surveyor, Selwood Housing, said, “The equipment and devices are first class and they provide real-time data which is crucial for our damp and mould surveyors. As we aim to eradicate damp and mould from our housing stock, the equipment allows us to be proactive in our approach, with the regular updates from Aico’s HomeLink technology alerting us to any of our stock that’s at high risk of damp and mould.
“The dashboard is very user-friendly, with easy access to the required data without unnecessary complexity. The data is clear, organised and visually appealing, with key data and trends easily identified. The Aico team is highly knowledgeable and very supportive; they have swiftly answered any queries we have, and are always receptive to our feedback.
“From a damp and mould perspective, the development of the system has been helpful because the alerts for damp and mould have been adjusted so that only the very high-risk properties are flagged. Looking ahead, I believe the approach to historic damp and mould will be very much data-driven, so further development might be needed which we will be happy to be part of.”
A model for the future
Selwood Housing’s collaboration with Aico in piloting the HomeLink environmental sensors and gateways has demonstrated the potential for technology to positively impact tenant wellbeing and efficient property management. The insights gained from the pilot will inform future decisions regarding technology adoption, tenant engagement strategies and overall property management practices.
