Week 8: Building of Things® – The OpticWise Origin Story: Reclaiming Control of the Building Stack
Introduction
Welcome to Week 8 of our 52-week journey through the future of digital infrastructure in commercial real estate. I’m Bill Douglas, CEO of OpticWise and co-author of Peak Property Performance: Game-Changing AI and Digital Strategies for Commercial Real Estate. This week, we’re telling the origin story of Building of Things®—a concept born out of necessity, insight, and decades of experience at the intersection of technology and real estate.
Where It All Began
Back in 2004, Drew Hall founded a company called Summit Networks. He was designing networks for buildings long before PropTech became a buzzword. When I joined in 2016 and we rebranded as OpticWise, we realized something fundamental: even the most sophisticated commercial properties were built on digital quicksand. Owners had no idea who controlled their networks, where their data was going, or how to use digital infrastructure as an asset.
The Aha Moment: Stack Control = Asset Control
We saw buildings with five or more different vendors managing Wi-Fi, BMS, access control, and HVAC—none of them connected or playing together. Data was siloed. Systems were brittle. Contracts gave control to outsiders. That’s when it hit us: the building itself wasn’t the issue. It was the invisible tech layer—what we now call the Building of Things® stack.
**BoT®** is not just a play on IoT. It’s a reframe. It’s about structuring the digital layers of a building like a tech company would: with intention, interoperability, and owner control.
PPP Insight: Infrastructure as a Strategic Asset
In *Peak Property Performance*, we explain that most owners have unknowingly outsourced the foundation of their future. When you don’t own your network, your data, or your user experience, you’re just a tenant in your own asset.
The BoT® philosophy flips that. It treats digital infrastructure as the foundation of NOI growth, operational resilience, and tenant satisfaction. It unifies hardware, software, and data into one owner-controlled stack.
From Vendor Chaos to Unified Control
When we perform a PPP Digital Infrastructure Review, we often uncover what we call ‘stack chaos’:
– Redundant vendor contracts
– Siloed point solutions
– Inconsistent and incongruent tenant experiences
– Data that’s inaccessible or unusable
BoT® is how we bring order to that chaos. It’s a strategy and framework for consolidation, standardization, and strategic transformation.
Stack as a System vs. Stack as a Service
A traditional building treats systems as isolated tools. But BoT® shifts that thinking. With the right infrastructure, the building becomes a service delivery platform—one that supports revenue-generating applications, real-time data intelligence, and tenant delight.
It becomes proactive, intelligent, and monetizable.
Why BoT® Still Matters in 2025
Smart buildings are no longer optional—they’re expected. But truly intelligent buildings don’t come from gadgets or point upgrades. They come from owning the stack.
With AI moving to the edge, and tenants demanding seamless digital experiences, BoT® is more relevant than ever. It’s how owners build adaptability into their assets—and stay ahead of market, tech, and operational shifts.
Call to Action
Want to see what’s really running under the hood of your building? Start with a PPP Digital Infrastructure Review. Then let’s talk about how BoT® design can unlock NOI, simplify operations, and future-proof your portfolio.
Visit OpticWise to learn more and schedule your review.
Andrew Stanton CEO Proptech-PR
Andrew Stanton Founder & Editor of 'PROPTECH-X' where his insights, connections, analysis and commentary on proptech and real estate are based on writing 1.3M words annually. Plus meeting 1,000 Proptech founders, critiquing 400 decks and having had 130 clients as CEO of 'PROPTECH-PR', a consultancy for Proptech founders seeking growth and exit strategies. He also acts as an advisory for major global real estate companies on sales, acquisitions, market positioning & operations. With 200K followers & readers, he is the 'Proptech Realestate Influencer.'
- Andrew Stantonhttps://proptech-x.com/author/andrew-stanton/
- Andrew Stantonhttps://proptech-x.com/author/andrew-stanton/
- Andrew Stantonhttps://proptech-x.com/author/andrew-stanton/
- Andrew Stantonhttps://proptech-x.com/author/andrew-stanton/
