How It Works

The Comfy solution includes an app for employees, an insights dashboard for workplace teams, and world-class professional services, providing employees with the experience they expect and delivers the results workplace teams need. Below we explain how it all works–what users experience in the app, how workplace teams benefit, and how we seamlessly integrate with your existing workplace systems.
Temperature  |  Lighting  |  Rooms  |  Desks  |  Work Requests  |  Amenities

Temperature

Comfy allows users to warm or cool a space on-demand to maximize personal comfort. Immediately following a request, the temperature setpoint is adjusted to put the zone into maximum heating or cooling (length of commands vary by system type, typically between 10 minutes to an hour). Comfy works well in both enclosed rooms and open spaces, and helps reduce, not increase ‘temperature battles.’ Over time, Comfy aggregates what it has learned from the requests and automatically adjusts setpoints every 20 minutes to reflect user preferences. Comfy can also help customers reduce HVAC energy costs by widening default temperature deadbands in underutilized spaces. Comfy's sophisticated solution is non-intrusive and integrates seamlessly with your existing control systems, including VAV, CAV, FCU, UFAD, VRF, Heat pumps and more.

System Integration

1. Comfy requires no major hardware upgrades. The Comfy Gateway, which is about the size of a tissue box, plugs into your BMS network. It connects to the Comfy cloud via a secure outbound internet connection.

2. Users make a request to warm or cool their space via the app. This request is sent to the Comfy Cloud. Users do NOT have access to directly change temperature setpoints.

3. The Comfy Gateway reads the request from the cloud, and translates it into a BACnet command to provide immediate comfort and learned user preferences.

BMS and Controls Compatibility

Comfy is compatible with most major BMS vendors. Systems must be BACnet enabled (yes, we are BTL certified) and have the necessary points available for Comfy to read and write. We use a variety of sequences to produce two key outcomes: immediate comfort and Comfy Learning. Comfy sequences will always meet the needs of the specific system in place and control vendor, and these commands are only sent to terminal units, not to base building plants. All control sequences are agreed upon with the customer in advance of launch.

Lighting

Comfy empowers users to adjust the light around the office to their preferred lighting level or scene to maximize comfort and productivity. The lighting management system can also incorporate scheduling, occupancy sensors, and timers to utilize lighting resources more efficiently. This allows building managers to maximize energy savings. Comfy integrates with most BACnet enabled lighting systems (see the logos below) and via cloud-to-cloud API.

System Integration

Comfy connects to your lighting system either via our Comfy Gateway, which uses BACnet to control the lighting settings, or via API, which communicates directly with our application.

Systems Compatibility

Comfy is compatible with many major lighting vendors and adding more all the time! We can integrate either via BACnet or via API. Contact our team of experts to inquire about your system.

Rooms

Comfy enables users to find available meeting rooms, view the room’s resources and capacity, and book them on-the-go. Through optional integration with occupancy sensors, users can quickly find available space without looking through a long list of rooms or walking through the halls. By leveraging insights from both sensor and user data, workplace teams can optimize space utilization and operational efficiency. Comfy automatically syncs to your existing calendar and meeting room systems and can be used in tandem with existing solutions.  

System Integration: Room Booking

1. Comfy requires read access (to determine room availability) and write access (to book rooms) to calendars via service account. We do NOT need access to individual calendars. For any rooms not already included in your existing booking system, Comfy can place these rooms on our internal calendar system to enable booking capability.

2. When a user finds and books a room, the request goes through the Comfy Cloud and updates the calendar server with new meeting data.

3. A meeting invite will show up on the user’s calendar and digital room signage as booked by Comfy on behalf of the user.

Systems Compatibility

Comfy is compatible with most mainstream calendar system vendors. Contact our team of experts to inquire about your system.

System Integration: Room Occupancy

1. Through the use of REST APIs, Comfy is able to receive data from your occupancy sensors. In some cases, Comfy connects directly to building systems that include occupancy sensors. 

2. Comfy utilizes sensor data to enable users to find an available room either by browsing floor maps or inputting search criteria in Comfy’s Location Center. In instances where both booking and occupancy data are available, Comfy will use a combination of both data sources to display availability status.

Systems Compatibility

Comfy is compatible with most major occupancy sensor vendors. Your connected lighting system may also be able to provide occupancy data. Contact our team of experts to inquire about your system.

Desks

Comfy allows users to quickly view, find, and book an available desk. Through optional integration with occupancy sensors, desk availability is updated in real time as users occupy desks. With Comfy Desks, users save time locating and booking desks, and workplace teams can use powerful sensor data to inform space utilization decisions.

System Integration: Desk Booking

1. Desk booking is managed on Comfy's internal calendar system and therefore does not require an external booking system administered by customers.

2. Comfy utilizes desk booking data to enable users to find an available desk either by browsing floor maps or inputting search criteria in Comfy's Location Center. In instances where both booking and occupancy data are available, Comfy will use a combination of both data sources to display availability status.

System Integration: Desk Occupancy

1. Through the use of REST APIs, Comfy receives data from your occupancy sensors.

2. Comfy utilizes sensor data to enable users to find an available desk either by browsing floor maps or inputting search criteria in Comfy's Location Center. In instances where both booking and occupancy data are available, Comfy will use a combination of both data sources to display availability status.

Systems Compatibility

Comfy is compatible with most major occupancy sensor vendors. Contact our team of experts to inquire about your system.

Work Requests

Work Requests enable users to submit internal requests to facilities management teams through the Comfy app. Think of Work Requests as an additional front-end for your pre-existing ticketing system, where users aren’t required to switch applications to file a request, they can simply submit feedback from Comfy. Facilities managers can expect to discover issues faster and in better detail, thanks to metadata about the location, user, and equipment, which Comfy can include in each Work Request ticket.

System Integration

1. Comfy adds your ticketing system’s email address to the Work Request feature.

2. A user submits a work request in the Comfy app (e.g. reporting an AV issue in a conference room). For each work request, the user selects a location and chooses from a list of work request categories. Facilities teams have the option to require descriptions and allow for anonymous submissions. To facilitate automatic routing of tickets to the appropriate team (IT, FM, etc.), the email address tickets are sent to and metadata can be customized for each category of work requests.

3. The work request generates an email that is either sent to an individual or creates a ticket in your existing work order management system. The email includes customizable metadata about location, user, request type, and any additional details entered by the user.

Systems Compatibility

Work Requests integrates with common third party ticketing systems such as Zendesk. If an existing ticketing system is not in place, emails can be directed to individuals or teams.

Amenities

The Comfy Amenities feature enables users to find important places in the building and campus, such as gyms, cafés, and mother's rooms. With links to internal or external websites, users can find what they need within a single user interface, and submit work tickets for specific amenities. Simple to use and implement, amenities are available for all buildings.

System Integration

1. Comfy provides a form for you to fill in amenity names, descriptions, links, and hours. You send us this form, as well as the amenity locations on a floor plan.

2. Comfy configures this feature for any building with no integration required.

More Resources

Comfy seamlessly integrates with your existing workplace systems and follows strict security protocols and practices. See below for more information on our BACnet enabled integrations, security practices, and privacy policy.

 

Temperature Technical Sheet

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FAQ for Facilities

 

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FAQ for IT

 

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Security Practices

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Privacy Policy

 

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