Colliers International is partnering with Basking Automation, an occupancy analytics platform startup whose tech is designed to help office space occupants use their space more efficiently.

According to the partners, the platform will help plan staff allocation, lease handling and portfolio strategies, using real-time occupancy analytics, artificial intelligence and Internet of Things technologies.

“As real estate and office managers adapt to the new flexible workplace environment, this partnership will help Colliers’ clients use the data to optimize their costs and create more productive office spaces,” Basking CEO Eldar Gizzatov said in a statement.

The more data that is fed into the platform, the better it performs and the more capabilities users will have to serve their needs, Colliers and Basking said.

For instance, the Basking platform can visualize space use across various metrics, including energy consumption, occupancy and system usage, and automate tasks for office space based on pre-set rules.

Basking was incubated at Innogy Innovation Hub and incorporated in late 2017. It is a Colliers Proptech Accelerator Powered by Techstars company. Techstars provides its companies with access to financial, human and intellectual capital.

The market for occupancy analytics in office space is growing rapidly, driven by increasing office densification, poor space utilization and demand for more productive environments, according to smart building specialist Memoori Research.

Memoori estimates that the market for office occupancy analytics, which was $1.45B worldwide in 2017, will to grow to $4.6B by 2022.

The potential uses of occupancy analytics include space optimization, indoor mapping, people counting and tracking, asset tracking, scanning and visualizing indoor space, and room and desk booking, Memoori reports.

However, the company notes, there are still obstacles for building owners and operators seeking to adopt these technologies. The sheer variety of different technologies competing for a space can be confusing, and security and privacy concerns also act as barriers to the growth of the market.