The past decade has been impressive in the context of technology-driven concepts. And out of all these concepts that have now managed to become mainstream, perhaps none is quite as famous as mobile apps for restaurants. Sure enough, it is a consequence of the online food delivery app revolution. However, mobile apps have given restaurants the means to pursue and achieve renewed growth individually as well instead of merely relying on generalized food delivery apps. But mobile apps on their own are a tricky concept, so when it comes to developing one for a market as competitive as restaurants and food delivery, you need a specialized approach.

With custom mobile apps, the focus is only on your restaurant. The obvious benefits of that mean, you don’t have to compete for the business of folks visiting your app. Then there’s also the fact that instead of overwhelming customers with countless choices, you can offer them a carefully curated menu that is following what they prefer. Now, one may be inclined to believe that third-party apps such as Swiggy and Zomato are more popular among customers. Thankfully, studies have shown that restaurants’ dedicated websites and apps are substantially more popular than third-party solutions. Fortunately, that’s not the only reason why you should consider restaurant application development. Here are some other compelling reasons to take the plunge.

1. Simplified user experience: The quickest way to win over a customer is to deliver a seamless, fuss-free experience. Suffice it to say that a custom mobile app is decidedly one way to go about because it saves customers the effort of sifting through several restaurants and menu options to find your restaurant. This convenience is what will drive them back to your app when just want to order in and relax or other such moments.

2. Loyalty programs: For any customer-facing business, rewards programs are a crucial part of its strategy. However, with third-party solutions, one can’t run an exclusive rewards program and instead has to partake in the third-party app’s policy. However, when you have a dedicated app for just your restaurant, you are free to innovate with your rewards and loyalty program and also integrate technologies such as location technologies to drive more customers to your establishment.

3. Access to valuable data: Data stands to deliver incredible value for the restaurant industry as it would for any other industry. However, with third-party solutions, the quality and quantity of data, you can access is significantly reduced. So, when you create your restaurant app, you can collect data about everything — starting from customer behavior, popular time slots, direct feedback about food and service, etc. This data can then be used to customize operations, marketing strategy, and more to drive better growth for the business.

Today, smartphones are everywhere and they are going to become even more prevalent in the future. Hence, the most potent way to leverage this opportunity and achieve the benefits such as the ones listed above is via restaurant application development.

Artificial Intelligence (AI) is proving to have promising application in construction industry. Seeing how HVAC systems contribute to the largest share of energy consumption in commercial and residential buildings, energy efficiency measures that target HVAC can help achieve major savings. AI can help improve both energy efficiency as well as indoor air quality by optimizing airflow, humidity and temperature while maintaining the lowest possible energy consumption.

However, it is advised that energy saving HVAC upgrades should not hinder with the indoor environmental quality as it can cause discomfort and health issues in some cases too. This can also have a negative impact on productivity at work places and business settings.

Let’s take a look at how AI can improve HVAC efficiency with the following cases:

HVAC control

Controlling an HVAC system effectively becomes quite a challenging task when the building conditions are constantly changing. Consider the following scenarios:

With changing outdoor temperature, the heating or cooling required to maintain a suitable indoor temperature is affected.
HVAC control and optimization is also affected by indoor activities. For example, a commercial kitchen would require more ventilation than an work place of the same size.
The ventilation requirements and temperature control systems are also affected by people entering and leaving the buildings.
All the above situations cannot be efficiently managed with manual controls for optimal performance. This is where AI makes the job easy by allowing smart control systems that process real-time data and adjust the HVAC systems accordingly. This helps HVAC systems to operate at peak optimal performance even with variable building conditions.

Smart Controls for Ventilation Systems

For optimizing ventilation systems, considering the outdoor airflow for determining the optimal variables is a must. Air Handlers consume less energy than space heaters and air conditioners. However, the outdoor airflow determines the heating and cooling needs of a building. For example, if the outdoor airflow is increased during winter, more heat is needed to maintain the suitable indoor temperature. The same can be applied for air conditioners during summer when ventilation system increases outdoor airflow.

Many buildings have ventilation systems operating at full airflow. This leads to a major waste of energy. Overventilation leads to energy wastage while underventilation leads to detrimental effects on indoor air quality. Ventilation system coupled with AI can determine the optimal airflow for maintaining a suitable environment of the building. AI can also keep a track of number of occupants and also the air pollutants concentration. It is highly recommended that the ventilation systems should never reduce the airflow below the required minimum value as suggested by the local building codes.

Optimizing Space Heating and Air Conditioning

According to a study by Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (LBNL), peak human productivity is reached when the indoor temperature is around 22 degree Celsius. The study also observed that as the temperature increases or decreases, it caused discomfort and lowered the productivity. Extreme temperatures are highly unlikely even with deficient HVAC systems. However, the indoor air quality degrades gradually as the temperature diverges from the ideal range. Improved and efficient performance is possible with AI enabled smart controls for the HVAC system.

Building furnaces, boilers, chillers and other HVAC equipment are now available with in-built AI. Thus, major energy savings can be expected just by upgrading the old equipment. The use of smart controls leads to efficient working of the entire HVAC system at all times.

AI Synergy with Energy Efficiency Measures

Based on the previous points, it is evident by now that energy efficiency measures are more effective when coupled with artificial intelligence. Two examples of HVAC upgrades that work best with AI are Airside Economizers and Energy Recovery Ventilations.

Airside economizers can help save energy in some climate conditions. When outside air is within suitable temperature and humidity range, the economizers increase ventilation rates and reduce the need for air conditioning. Since ventilation fans need less energy than air conditioners, electricity can be saved. Smart controls can further maximize these savings.

In energy recovery ventilation, when the outdoor airflow is optimized, the energy wastage for heating or cooling is avoided. ERV can then exchange heat between supply air and exhaust air, ultimately reducing the workload on HVAC even further, ERV works for both summer and winter by maintaining suitable temperature with indoor air precooling or indoor air preheating.

So follow the options above and move your dreams forward and live life fully and be amongst the many successful.

Due to increase in price of commodities, people are looking for more and more sources of income. Brick-and-mortar businesses and companies have decreased in popularity with many shifting their focus and attention to the Internet.

Along with the increase in online business opportunities are the need for quality article and content writers. If you have a passion for writing and possess a strong grasp of the English language, you are already halfway to becoming a freelance article writer. In order to be amongst successful freelance article writers you must have a strong grasp of the English language. If you can prove yourself as a good article writer, you will be able to build a strong reputation for yourself over time.

When you first start as a freelance article writer, you will have to be persistent and not give up easily. It will be hard to avail jobs since you have not established yourself. You will also need to be prepared to accept low to average rates for your work. However, if writing is something that comes naturally to you, it wouldn’t take long to prove your worth and at the same time, establish your name amongst quality freelance article writers.

Research is an important aspect of freelance article writing. This is because in the goal to be a successful freelance writer, you should be versatile in your writing. You should not limit yourself to any specific writing style or subject. Maybe after you have established yourself in the freelance industry and know your strengths, then you could consider to go into a specific niche article market writing (children’s articles; health; travel and the likes).

The Internet provides the most opportunities for novice and experienced writers alike to make money writing from home. Here are few options that you can use in the beginning to earn money writing articles.

1. Content websites. The content websites or content providers have plenty of pros and cons. You can look for popular websites that publish content on its own sites such and even sells articles from its writers to other websites.

2. Local newspapers, magazines and newsletters. If you have a local connection, you’re more likely to freelance or “string” for such publications even without any real writing experience.

3. National newspapers, magazines, newsletters and trade journals. Unless you have considerable writing experience, do not waste your time pitching to these markets as a freelance article writer. Even the most experienced writers face stiff competition when trying to freelance for popular magazines and newspapers.

4. Job bidding websites. Websites offering job opportunities offer plenty of opportunities for article writers of all experiences and ability levels.

Before approaching any of these markets, update your resume to emphasize your experience as a freelance article writer. If you do not have any experience, get some quickly by starting-and actually writing-in a blog. If you’re eligible to write for a college newspaper, taking this step can also help move you forward. College publications can provide you plenty of opportunities with experienced article writers and editors, which can help you land amongst some very experienced writers.

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