More space, less waste: 6 ways occupancy sensors change the game

There are billions of square feet of real estate in the US. Offices, schools, hotels, airport lounges—you name it. But here’s the kicker: only 27% of that space is actually being used at peak times, according to recent Density data. That means the rest is mostly sitting empty.

It’s like paying for a four-bedroom house and only using one of them. We’re dramatically underutilizing the spaces we’ve built, and it’s costing millions in unnecessary leases, inefficient cleaning and needless utility expenses, to name just a few costs. Not ideal.

The problem with current measurement

Many companies think they’re tracking space occupancy, but they’re relying on methods that do a poor job. Like manual occupancy studies, where clipboard-wielding employees go around counting heads. These studies often look at small sample sizes and short time frames, resulting in just snapshots that won’t give you a ton of insight. 

Badge data? It’ll tell you when someone entered a building. But you won’t know where they went after that. 

And WiFi tracking? A laptop, phone and smartwatch belonging to the same person could end up being counted as multiple people. You might think your office hosted a rave, when it was just a few employees hanging out in a room with all of their devices!

Bottom line: crummy counting yields poor insights. Many companies may be making multi-million dollar real estate decisions based on what amounts to educated guesswork.

For a deeper dive into why these methods aren’t cutting it, check out Why your “good enough” workplace measurement isn’t good enough.

A smarter way to measure space

The workplace is in the middle of a seismic shift. Post-pandemic, only 15% of US workers have stayed fully remote (according to recruiting firm Robert Half). The rest? They’re navigating the hybrid maze, and return to office is gaining serious momentum. (Check out Your return-to-office playbook: 5 ways to make RTO a success for the full scoop.)

With office needs now a moving target, companies should be asking sharper questions:

• Do we actually need to lease all this space?
• Are meeting rooms really maxed out, or is it just poor booking behavior?
• How do people actually want to work when they show up? Desks? Focus spaces?
• Could we optimize snacks and food restocking based on real demand?

Enter occupancy sensors—a more reliable way to get the most out of your real estate. Using tech like thermal imaging, motion detection, cameras or radar (that’s us, Density), businesses are getting real-time, hard data on how their spaces are actually used. 

And the companies using these insights? They’re seeing great ROI—slashing costs, streamlining operations and making the office work for employees, not against them.

Here are six ways occupancy sensors can change the game for your business.

1. Save a bundle in lease costs

When you get more reliable counts on your people, you can reconfigure your spaces to accommodate more employees on a floor without crowding. The goal is to get better efficiency—alignment of occupancy of your space with its capacity—out of your real estate. 

This lets you roll off leases and get more out of floors and buildings in your portfolio. 

One major telecom company thought it needed all seven floors of its New York City office. But after deploying Density’s occupancy sensors, they realized employees were thinly spread out. That efficiency wasn’t there. 

By consolidating down to four floors, they saved an estimated $2.6 million in annual lease costs. (Check out “Less is more: A success story on downsizing office space.) 

Instead of holding onto leases unnecessarily, companies can use data to explore getting more out of what they already have. Use our ROI calculator for an estimate of what you could save.

2. Design spaces people actually want to use

One of the biggest benefits of deploying sensors is that it gives you the ability to create spaces based on actual human preferences—not just based on trends or instincts.

Workplace designers are increasingly using occupancy insights to create environments that work for their teams and orgs. When workspace designs are grounded in real data, you’re more likely to create a great employee experience.

When a global consulting firm used Density sensors to study workplace behavior, they found that quiet zones (with privacy screens) were effectively twice as popular as open-plan desks.

• Quiet desks: Used for 5+ hours per day
• Open-plan desks: Used for 2.5 hours per day

With this insight, they redesigned their spaces to match how employees actually work—not how they assumed they did.

3. Make better business decisions with hard data

It’s easy to assume you need more desks, more meeting rooms, more everything. Ask any manager who’s heard their team complain about lack of space or seen employees wasting time looking for meeting rooms.

At one Density customer workplace, leaders were also convinced they needed more meeting rooms. The reality? 25% of their bookings were ghosted—meetings that were booked but never actually used.

With data in hand, workplace planners were able to push back on costly expansions they didn’t need. And by using Live Wayfinding, employees can find a free meeting room in a snap.

Instead of guessing, planners who use occupancy data have real insights to justify (or challenge) major decisions. (Check out Got ghost meetings? How to solve this costly workplace challenge.)

4. Reduce cleaning costs without cutting corners

Most office buildings clean on a schedule, whether the spaces have been used or not. That’s like washing your entire wardrobe every day.

Occupancy sensors enable companies to flip this model. They show which areas are actually being used, so cleaning crews can focus on high-traffic spaces and skip untouched areas. 

One global tech company using Density sensors saw a 30% drop in cleaning expenses after adjusting their cleaning schedules based on real occupancy data.

Employees love it too—spaces that need cleaning now get prioritized, while barely used areas aren’t needlessly disrupted.

5. Give customers real-time service updates

Beyond the office, retailers and hospitality companies are tapping sensors to give customers real-time intel on service levels. Nothing is more frustrating for a weary traveler than trekking across an airport to a lounge, only to find it’s packed.

Airport lounge operators like airlines and credit card companies are using occupancy sensors to monitor real-time crowd levels across their lounges and feed real-time updates to members on lounge availability straight to their apps. Staff can adjust in real time too, shifting resources to keep things like lounge check-ins running smoothly. 

(Check out From packed to luxe: How occupancy sensors are saving the airport lounge experience.)

Hotels and gyms are catching on to occupancy data, too—letting guests see how busy common areas are before they even leave their rooms.

6. Cut down on waste—from food to carbon emissions

When you know how your spaces are being used, you can make smarter decisions about how big they should be—and what to put in them. This is enabling all types of organizations—from bustling universities to sprawling multinationals—slash inefficiencies in the process. 

Universities are using sensors to measure student counts in dining halls. With accurate numbers of how many students are actually showing up for each meal every day, they can reduce food waste and optimize meal costs.

In turn, students can use the real-time occupancy data to see how crowded dining halls are—before they even leave their dorms.

And it’s not just about food—real estate is responsible for 40% of global CO₂ emissions, according to Architecture 2030. With occupancy insights, businesses can increase utilization of existing spaces. The outcome? Companies can still grow without expanding their physical footprint or environmental impact. 

The bottom line: occupancy sensors make a difference

Occupancy sensors won’t magically fix every inefficiency. They don’t make decisions—they just give you the insights to make better ones.

And not all sensors are created equal—not all of them give you the granular insights you might need. Want to know exactly how people are spending time in a space? You’ll likely need high-precision, powered radar sensors. 

Not all sensors are as privacy-friendly. Some capture personally identifiable data, triggering all kinds of security concerns and employee objections.

Bottom line? You’ll want to do your homework. The right sensor can transform your business. 

Smarter spaces. Lower costs. Happier employees. Less waste. Win-win-win-win.

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