Occupancy sensors are changing how workplace teams understand office usage- revealing the gap between what’s booked and what’s actually happening on your floors.
It’s 10:04 a.m. on a Tuesday. Your office is booked to 85% capacity. But as you walk the floors, something doesn’t add up.
Entire rows of desks are empty. Meanwhile, a team is huddled around a couch in the break area, brainstorming ideas.
Welcome to the disconnect between booking data and real office behaviour.
TL;DR:
- Occupancy sensors bridge the gap between what’s booked and what’s actually used in your office. They reveal no-shows and ghost bookings, show where teams naturally collaborate, and provide real-time data to right-size resources like cleaning, HVAC, and catering.
- By combining sensor data with booking systems and access control, workplace teams can redesign spaces around actual employee behaviour, reduce wasted spend by 15-30%, and create offices people actually want to use- without guesswork.
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What Are Occupancy Sensors?
Occupancy sensors are devices that detect the presence of people in a space using technologies like passive infrared (PIR), ultrasonic waves, CO2 monitoring, or desk pressure detection.
Unlike booking systems that track reservations, occupancy sensors measure actual real-time usage– making them essential for understanding true workplace utilization. Modern occupancy sensors integrate with workplace management platforms to provide facilities teams with accurate data about which spaces are used, when, and for how long.
Types of Occupancy Sensors for Workplace Management
Different occupancy sensor technologies serve different workplace needs:
- Occupancy sensors detect motion and heat signatures, making them ideal for individual desks and small meeting rooms.
- CO2 occupancy sensors measure carbon dioxide levels to determine room occupancy, particularly effective in enclosed meeting spaces.
- Pressure-based occupancy sensors sit under desk surfaces to detect when someone is actually working at a workstation.
- Camera-based occupancy sensors (with privacy masking) count people in larger spaces like cafeterias or collaboration zones without identifying individuals.
Ronspot integrates with most major occupancy sensor types, allowing you to mix technologies based on your specific space requirements and privacy policies.
Why Occupancy Data Alone Doesn’t Tell the Full Story
Most organisations rely on booking tools to make workplace decisions. Yet research from JLL shows that teams use meeting rooms only 40% of the time they book them and studies indicate that desk utilization in hybrid workplaces averages just 35-45% on any given day.
Here’s the fundamental problem:
Bookings don’t equal actual usage. Presence doesn’t equal productivity. And assumptions certainly don’t equal experience.
Without accurate, real-time insights from workplace occupancy monitoring, workplace teams are left guessing:
- Which spaces are truly in use?
- Are meeting rooms actually being used for meetings?
- Is your formal collaboration space empty while your informal corners are buzzing?
This is where occupancy sensors come in – not just as a tool, but as a truth-teller about how your office actually functions. Desk occupancy sensors, meeting room sensors and space utilisation sensors are essential in modern hybrid offices to unlock the truth of how employees really use the office.
From Guesswork to Insight: What Sensors Show That Bookings Can’t
Ronspot now integrates with occupancy sensors to help workplace teams see the full picture – bridging the gap between what’s booked and what’s actually happening.
Here’s what you can uncover with sensor data:
1. How Occupancy Sensors Detect No-Shows and Abandoned Spaces
Someone books a desk but never shows up. Another person leaves their laptop at a workstation, then disappears for the rest of the day. Your system says “occupied” – but the space isn’t being used.
Workplace occupancy sensors detect actual presence using PIR (passive infrared), CO2 levels, or desk pressure sensors. When a booked space remains unoccupied for a set threshold, the system can trigger auto-release, opening those spaces up for others who need them.
This alone can improve space utilization by 15-25%, according to workplace analytics studies.
2. Using Occupancy Sensors to Map Collaboration Patterns
People gravitate towards where they feel most comfortable. You may have invested heavily in formal collaboration zones with writable walls and video conferencing setups, but your teams prefer the breakout area with natural sunlight and a view of the city.
Space utilisation sensors help you map movement patterns and understand which spaces are loved – and which are ignored. This behavioural data reveals the truth about space design: intention doesn’t always match reality.
By analysing occupancy sensor heatmaps over time, facilities managers can identify underutilized zones and repurpose them based on actual employee preferences rather than architectural assumptions.
3. Real-Time Occupancy Sensor Data for Workplace Planning
You no longer need to rely on assumptions or wait for end-of-month reports. Sensors show what’s happening right now.
- Are meeting rooms in use or just ghosted bookings?
- Are some teams back at full strength mid-week while others remain remote?
- Do you really need all five floors open on Fridays when occupancy drops to 30%?
With this clarity, workplace teams can right-size cleaning schedules, catering orders, and HVAC systems in real time – driving both sustainability goals and operational savings.
Organizations implementing occupancy sensor-driven strategies report energy cost reductions of 20-35% by conditioning only occupied zones.
Designing the Office Around How People Actually Work
The future of work is not about filling seats – it’s about designing spaces that support how people want to work.
And here’s the reality: the old 1-person-per-desk model is gone.
Today’s employees come to the office for connection, not just concentration. They seek face-to-face collaboration and serendipitous encounters that spark creativity. Occupancy sensors help you support that shift by answering key questions:
- Do we need more collaboration zones and fewer individual desks?
- Are meeting rooms booked but sitting empty while informal spaces overflow?
- Are quiet areas being repurposed by teams for impromptu meetings?
Armed with this data, you can transform the office into a space employees actually enjoy – without wasting budget or floor space on underused areas.
How Occupancy Sensors Compare to Other Tracking Methods
Understanding the difference between data sources helps you choose the right workplace analytics approach.
| Tracking Method | What It Shows | What It Misses | Best Use Case | Privacy Level |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Booking Systems | Reservation intent and scheduled space usage | No-shows, early departures, actual occupancy | Understanding demand and enabling space reservation | High – only tracks voluntary bookings |
| Badge Swipe Data | Building entry/exit times and overall headcount | Which specific spaces are used, movement between floors | Measuring daily attendance and building capacity | Medium – tracks individual entry but not location |
| Occupancy Sensors | Real-time presence in specific zones and spaces | Individual identity and task being performed | Understanding actual space utilization and usage patterns | High – detects presence anonymously without identifying individuals |
| Integrated Platform | Complete picture combining bookings, access, and occupancy | Nothing – provides full visibility | Comprehensive workplace strategy and optimization | Configurable – combines multiple data sources with privacy controls |
The best approach? Combining all three for complete visibility. Ronspot integrates booking data, access control systems, and occupancy sensors into a unified workplace analytics platform – giving facilities, IT, and operations teams a single source of truth about how the office is used.
Privacy Considerations: What Sensors Track (and What They Don’t)
A common concern with occupancy sensors is employee privacy. Modern workplace sensors detect presence specifically without identifying individuals.
They measure “is someone here?” not “who is here?” — using anonymous detection methods like:
- Heat signatures (PIR sensors)
- CO2 level changes
- Desk pressure or weight sensors
- Motion detection in zones
These sensors comply with GDPR and other privacy regulations because they don’t collect personally identifiable information. Employees can work confidently knowing the system doesn’t track individual movements- only aggregate space usage patterns.
Future-Ready Offices Start With Better Questions
The most successful workplace teams don’t just manage facilities – they evolve them based on evidence.
Instead of asking “How many desks do we have?” they’re asking:
- “What type of spaces do we actually need?”
- “Where are we overinvested in unused square footage?”
- “How can we make coming to the office feel worth it?”
Occupancy sensors help you answer these questions with confidence. By combining sensor data with Ronspot’s booking system, access control integrations, and real-time analytics, you can:
- Capture the truth about how your office is used
- Identify gaps between space intent and space reality
- Optimize workplace design, cost, and employee experience
Key Benefits of Occupancy Sensors in Workplace Management
Occupancy sensors deliver measurable value across multiple workplace functions:
- For Facilities Teams: Occupancy sensors enable data-driven space planning and right-sizing decisions, reducing real estate costs by identifying underutilized areas.
- For Operations: Occupancy sensor data helps optimize cleaning schedules, HVAC usage, and resource allocation based on actual presence rather than assumptions.
- For IT: Occupancy sensors integrate with access control and booking systems to create a unified workplace technology ecosystem.
- For Employees: Occupancy sensors power features like live space availability maps and auto-release of unused bookings, improving the day-to-day office experience.
Final Thought: Don’t Just Manage the Office – Evolve It
The best offices aren’t static. They evolve with how people use them.
With Ronspot and occupancy sensors, you gain the clarity to adjust in real-time, predict future needs, and design spaces employees actually want to use.
Because the most successful workplace teams don’t just react to change – they anticipate it.
Ready to see what your occupancy data is really telling you? Learn how Ronspot’s sensor integrations can transform your workplace strategy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Booking data shows intent – what employees plan to use. Occupancy sensors show reality – what’s actually being used. Sensors detect physical presence using PIR, CO2, or pressure technologies, revealing no-shows, ghost bookings, and real usage patterns that booking systems miss.
No. Modern workplace sensors detect presence without identifying individuals. They measure whether a space is occupied, not who is occupying it. This approach complies with privacy regulations like GDPR while still providing useful space utilization data.
Leading workplace management platforms like Ronspot, integrate occupancy sensors via APIs. This integration combines sensor data with booking systems, access control, and desk reservation tools – creating a unified view of space usage without requiring employees to change their workflows.
Yes. Sensor data shows which days have peak in-office attendance, which teams prefer which spaces, and how usage patterns shift week-to-week. This helps workplace teams optimize everything from floor opening schedules to neighbourhood seating arrangements for hybrid teams.
Hybrid offices benefit most from a combination of PIR (passive infrared) sensors for individual desks and meeting rooms, plus CO2 sensors for enclosed collaboration spaces.
PIR occupancy sensors detect motion and heat signatures, making them ideal for tracking whether workstations are actively in use throughout the day.
CO2 occupancy sensors are particularly valuable in meeting rooms where they can accurately count occupants based on carbon dioxide levels- helping you understand not just if a room is occupied, but whether it’s being used to capacity.
For hot desking environments, pressure-based occupancy sensors placed under desks provide the most accurate real-time data since they detect actual seated presence rather than just movement in the area. Many workplace teams start with PIR sensors for desks and expand to CO2 sensors for meeting spaces as their occupancy tracking strategy matures.
Occupancy sensor costs vary significantly based on technology type and deployment scale. Installation costs depend on whether you need professional wiring or can use battery-powered wireless sensors that require minimal setup. Talk to our team to get a quote specific to your needs
Yes- occupancy sensors are actually optimal for effective hot desking systems. When integrated with platforms like Ronspot, occupancy sensors automatically detect when someone arrives at or leaves a hot desk, ensuring booking accuracy and enabling real-time space availability. This integration solves one of hot desking’s biggest challenges: ghost bookings where someone reserves a desk but never shows up.
Occupancy sensors can trigger auto-release protocols, freeing up unused desks within 15-30 minutes of no-show detection so other employees can book them. The sensors also provide valuable data about hot desking utilization patterns- showing which zone or desk types are most popular, which days see peak demand, and whether you have the right ratio of desk types (focus desks vs. collaborative spaces).
This combination of occupancy sensors and hot desking software creates a seamless experience where employees can find available space in real-time without walking the floors or relying on outdated booking screens.
No- you don’t need occupancy sensors on every desk to gain valuable workplace insights. Many organizations start with a phased approach, installing occupancy sensors on 30-50% of desks across representative zones to establish baseline utilization patterns. This sampling method provides sufficient data for strategic decisions while reducing upfront costs.
However, if you’re running a hot desking system where any employee can sit anywhere, you’ll get the best results with occupancy sensors on all bookable desks- this ensures accurate real-time availability and enables auto-release features that improve the employee experience.
For assigned seating environments, focus occupancy sensor deployment on high-value areas like meeting rooms, collaboration zones, and flex spaces where usage patterns are less predictable. You can always expand sensor coverage over time as you identify specific areas where you need more granular data.
The key is ensuring your occupancy sensor placement aligns with your specific workplace strategy- whether that’s optimizing hot desking, right-sizing meeting room inventory, or understanding overall space utilization trends.
Yes, Ronspot is serious about data protection, as reflected in our ISO 27001:2022 certification. We implement best-in-class Information Security Management Systems (ISMS) to defend against data breaches and cyber threats and ensure ongoing GDPR compliance.
