Rethinking the Single Pane of Glass: How Arup and JLL Prioritized Workflows and Data Governance Over UI Procurement at LaGuardia Terminal C
The industry’s quest for a single pane of glass (SPoG) often ends in a cycle of failed investments and messy integrations. At LaGuardia Airport Terminal C, Delta Airlines, JLL, and Arup broke this cycle by treating the unified interface not as a product to be procured, but as an operational tool to be built on top of a robust data layer.
The challenge was immense: four concourses and a headhouse supporting 30 different systems per building, including multiple BMS vendors. Instead of chasing a silver-bullet platform, the team built what they call the "Information Broker," a custom application built on Iconics to normalize data from siloed vendor systems.
The shifted approach in creating a successful SPoG started upstream. Rather than asking which vendor had the best dashboard, the team focused on foundational governance for the platform. “A single pane of glass is not something that you just buy; it's something that you need to build,” said Leo Gabrek, Digital Advisory Consultant at Arup. This required defining who would own and maintain the system after turnover before the first line of code was written.
In practice, this data layer allowed JLL’s facilities team to move from reactive rounds to automated, proactive workflows. For example, by pulling raw fuel tank height data directly from the fuel tank vendor (data normally inaccessible to a standard BMS) they created custom alarms that saved staff two hours of manual checks per round.
Kate Stelzel, Technology Operations Manager at JLL, noted the shift in SPoG approach: “The single pane of glass is not your end goal. It's your tool. You want use it to create real value”.
If you’d like to learn more, here are some ways to stay updated on stories like this:
- Watch the full presentation from NexusCon 2025
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The industry’s quest for a single pane of glass (SPoG) often ends in a cycle of failed investments and messy integrations. At LaGuardia Airport Terminal C, Delta Airlines, JLL, and Arup broke this cycle by treating the unified interface not as a product to be procured, but as an operational tool to be built on top of a robust data layer.
The challenge was immense: four concourses and a headhouse supporting 30 different systems per building, including multiple BMS vendors. Instead of chasing a silver-bullet platform, the team built what they call the "Information Broker," a custom application built on Iconics to normalize data from siloed vendor systems.
The shifted approach in creating a successful SPoG started upstream. Rather than asking which vendor had the best dashboard, the team focused on foundational governance for the platform. “A single pane of glass is not something that you just buy; it's something that you need to build,” said Leo Gabrek, Digital Advisory Consultant at Arup. This required defining who would own and maintain the system after turnover before the first line of code was written.
In practice, this data layer allowed JLL’s facilities team to move from reactive rounds to automated, proactive workflows. For example, by pulling raw fuel tank height data directly from the fuel tank vendor (data normally inaccessible to a standard BMS) they created custom alarms that saved staff two hours of manual checks per round.
Kate Stelzel, Technology Operations Manager at JLL, noted the shift in SPoG approach: “The single pane of glass is not your end goal. It's your tool. You want use it to create real value”.
If you’d like to learn more, here are some ways to stay updated on stories like this:
- Watch the full presentation from NexusCon 2025
- Sign up for the Nexus Labs newsletter to get five similar stories for owners each Wednesday:
This is a great piece!
I agree.