After holding various roles at North Carolina-headquartered Honeywell over a ten-year period, Udaya Shrivastava is currently the multinational technology and manufacturing firm’s VP and CTO of Building Automation.
Before joining Honeywell, Shrivastava led engineering teams at Invensys (now Schneider Electric) and at the automation firm GE Intelligent Platforms for manufacturing, turbine controls and military and aerospace product lines.
In the week of Earth Day, TechInformed and Shrivastava met over a brew to discuss how automation can make buildings more energy efficient, what operators can do to tackle the emissions on their premises, and, what women can do the combat imposter syndrome in male-dominated fields.
What is your zone of interest?
I’ve always had a keen interest in controls and automation. My interest stems from how these technologies can help our daily lives become more efficient and creative and how they can help turn the world into a more sustainable place. As such, my role satisfies both my personal and professional interests as I am focused on how we can embrace the latest technologies to transform how buildings operate.
Can AI and machine learning help offices become more energy efficient?
Facilities managers can enhance commercial buildings and office spaces by integrating smart building systems. Modern building systems equipped with smart sensors collect vast amounts of data. AI algorithms analyse this data, learning patterns and trends to predict and optimise energy usage.
What advice would you give to businesses looking to become more energy efficient?
Businesses should prioritise a comprehensive assessment of their installed assets, considering factors like ageing, operating conditions and optimisation opportunities.
Using advanced technologies that provide actionable insights is crucial for making informed decisions to help achieve ESG goals. Building managers want to understand their buildings’ dynamic occupancy patterns to avoid peak loads. Additionally, they want to use alternate sources of energy to mitigate for peak tariff pricing from utilities.
Using sustainable building technologies can yield immediate improvements, particularly in helping reduce carbon emissions from the built environment. For example, connected plug sockets help address a significant portion of energy consumption attributed to plug loads.
What steps do you take in your own home to become more sustainable?
We have LED-based lighting, and we also have set schedules for them that vary according to daylight settings. We also employ smart irrigation for our yard that takes into consideration the soil moisture levels and weather parameters like temperature and humidity.
There are also switches for sockets that help with energy efficiency. Like any other home in the United States, my home’s sockets were also without switches. So, we switched to smart sockets and smart lights as needed.
As a family, we also practice reduce-reuse or repurpose-recycle for various aspects of our day-to-day lives.
What kind of challenges have you faced as an engineer in a male dominated industry?
I’ve seen an increase in women in the early stages of their careers. The percentage falls significantly for managerial roles and only continues to decline for senior leadership roles.
Many women in this industry and others, including me, face the challenge of imposter syndrome. As such, it is essential that we look for ways to address this issue. Enhancing the representation of women in leadership roles, particularly within STEM fields, is imperative.
When women hold pivotal positions, it conveys a message that their contributions are not just valued but indispensable.
What advice would you give to young girls who want to pursue STEM careers?
It’s good to be the smart one in the class and to be outspoken, which can often take a lot of courage. When striving for success, there might be times when you find yourself as the only woman at the table. Should this happen, it is important to be confident and self-assured that you belong there.
Most importantly, find those who can support you throughout your career and do not be afraid to lean on them when needed. In turn, you will be able to offer the same support to others in days to come.
Other than caffeine, how do you recharge in your working day?
I like to walk to the back of my office building for a fantastic panoramic view of the Atlanta cityscape, while refilling my coffee. Throughout the day, I like to step out of my office and meet with colleagues in person. As I drive home, I use my commute time to recharge for the evening by catching up with my spouse on the phone, chatting about our day.
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