Lighting

Acuity Brands Intelligent Spaces Group and 2022 Financials Examined

While lighting makes up 95% of Acuity Brands revenue (they are now the largest lighting manufacturer in North America with over $4.01 billion in revenues), it is their Intelligent Spaces Group (ISG) business that focuses on smart buildings technology. In this Research Note, we examine the development of the ISG business and its recent financial results. Our analysis is based on their Q4 presentation, analyst call, 10K Report, y/e 31st August 2022 and activities throughout the fiscal year. Acuity’s Intelligent Spaces Group comprises the Distech Controls and Atrius brands, offering building management systems and software for improving energy efficiency, optimizing occupant experiences and monitoring physical assets. ISG generated net sales of $216.1 million for FY 2022, an increase of $26.1 million, or 13.7%, as compared to the prior year. ISG operating profit was $22.7 million for the same period, an increase of $12.8 million compared to the prior year.  Distech Controls currently accounts for the majority of ISG segment sales. The company sells predominantly to system […]

Stay ahead of the pack

with the latest independent smart building research and thought leadership.

Have an account? Login

Subscribe Now for just $180 USD per year per user ( just $15 USD per month) for Access to Quality Independent Smart Building Analysis!

What Exactly Do you Get?

  • Read every article published in full and get unlimited access to our archive of over 1,400 articles.
  • 10% discount on ALL Memoori Research reports for Subscribers! So if you only buy ONE report you will get your subscription fee back!
  • Industry-leading Analysis Every Week, Direct to your Inbox.
  • AND Cancel at any time
Subscribe Now

While lighting makes up 95% of Acuity Brands revenue (they are now the largest lighting manufacturer in North America with over $4.01 billion in revenues), it is their Intelligent Spaces Group (ISG) business that focuses on smart buildings technology. In this Research Note, we examine the development of the ISG business and its recent financial results. Our analysis is based on their Q4 presentation, analyst call, 10K Report, y/e 31st August 2022 and activities throughout the fiscal year.

Acuity’s Intelligent Spaces Group comprises the Distech Controls and Atrius brands, offering building management systems and software for improving energy efficiency, optimizing occupant experiences and monitoring physical assets. ISG generated net sales of $216.1 million for FY 2022, an increase of $26.1 million, or 13.7%, as compared to the prior year. ISG operating profit was $22.7 million for the same period, an increase of $12.8 million compared to the prior year. 

Distech Controls currently accounts for the majority of ISG segment sales. The company sells predominantly to system integrators. Their building management systems include products for controlling HVAC, lighting, shades, and access control to deliver end-to-end optimization of building systems. Distech Controls had strong sales in the fourth quarter, notably in their ECLYPSE controller, which uses open protocol technology to control and monitor systems and buildings, including heating, ventilation, lighting and other functions. 

Distech Controls’ Digital Partner Program (DPP) connects System Integrators with select partners to provide a portfolio of solutions for their clients' smart building projects. Seven months following the program’s inception, Distech Controls reached a milestone of over 25 partnerships across building technologies, property management, and occupant services.

Source: Distech Controls Web Site

In May 2022,  Zuul Inc., an Industrial IoT (IIoT) cyber security provider for critical infrastructure and smart cities, announced their inclusion in the partner program. The new relationship between these two organizations will advance Zuul’s overall position in securing cyber physical systems while providing enabling technology to Distech Controls’ SI base.

In April 2022, Distech Controls selected Encycle as a DPP partner based on its IoT technology, complementarity with other program partners, technological openness (Swarm Logic is available on Tridium's Niagara Framework), and collaborative practices. Participation in the program will help link Encycle's Swarm Logic energy management software with system integrators.

In March 2022, Distech Controls, announced that KODE Labs a US startup company that provides software as a service to optimize energy usage in buildings and overall operations, had joined the company’s Digital Partner Program (DPP). 

The Atrius business is considered to be at the active piloting stage, as they improve the product and functionality of their software, according to comments on the Q4 analyst call. 

The Atrius portfolio includes: 

  • Atrius Building Insights, a cloud-based energy management software, now includes energy reporting and visibility for ESG monitoring. The product was launched in Europe in January 2022. 
  • Atrius Building Manager, a cloud lighting management solution aimed at reducing operational costs, optimizing energy and improving occupant experiences.  Currently, more than 3,500 sites use Atrius Building Manager, with many more actively under deployment across North America.
  • Atrius Locator, a cloud-based solution for monitoring physical assets with the built environment. 
  • Atrius Vision, an AI-powered computer vision solution to evaluate live video streams.

Acuity Brands’ M&A activity over the past decade demonstrates the firm’s strong intentions to become a major player in the broader building technology space. This strategy was again the topic of the Q4 conference call, as the company indicated that M&A will become a more important component of their capital allocation over the next couple of years, saying;

We see very interesting adjacencies currently in the pipeline around our Spaces Group, which are both on the Distech side and on the Atrius side.

This article was written by Daphne Tomlinson, Senior Research Associate at Memoori.

Most Popular Articles

CXApp SPAC
Smart Buildings

Smart Building SPAC Trend Continues with Hybrid Work Play CXApp

Since 2019 the business world has been inundated with high-profile SPAC deals. And while we have certainly seen a slowdown in SPAC deals in recent months, the SPAC trend is by no means over. In the smart building industry, a new SPAC was completed this month, as workplace experience platform provider CXApp completed a business […]

Belimo
Energy

Belimo Building Controls Business & Growth Strategy 2022 Examined

In this Research Note, we examine the Belimo Group, based on their 2022 annual report, investor presentations, financial results announced on 6th March 2023 and their long-term growth strategy in the building automation field devices sector. Belimo Group, a listed company on the Swiss Stock Exchange, is headquartered in Hinwil, Switzerland with over 2,000 employees. […]

Commercial Buildings Design Build Gap
Smart Buildings

Bridging the Design-Operate Divide in Commercial Buildings

This week, architectural and interior design services company Aukett Swanke Group (ASG) has confirmed the acquisition of smart building technology company Torpedo Factory Group (TFG), in a deal that hints at a new potential trend in the commercial buildings sector. While architects have used M&A to broaden their technological capabilities in the past, few deals […]

Subscribe to the Newsletter & get all our Articles & Research Delivered Straight to your Inbox.

Please enter a valid email

Please enter your name

Please enter company name

By signing up you agree to our privacy policy