Loading...Building Automation
Picture a world in which all of the mechanical systems – in your office building, retail store, or warehouse – could be controlled by the simple click of a computer mouse.
You could open or close your H-VAC dampers instantly, turn the heat or air conditioning on or off immediately, even dim your entire lighting system depending on how much sunlight was coming in through the windows.
These examples are just the tip of the building automation iceberg and it is far more available and affordable today than it used to be thanks to the NECA-IBEW team.
ElectricTV’s Dominic Giarratano has the story.
The vast majority of the more than 4 million commercial buildings in America today are equipped with outdated mechanical system technology called legacy systems.
Fiddling with an individual thermostat to change the temperature of an office or department is an example of a legacy system.
So is flipping individual switches to turning on lights, hitting individual power buttons to boot up a computer, or pulling individual cords to open blinds.
If you have to do it manually – you’re on a legacy system.
For these reasons – building automation technology was invented and it allows you to control all the systems in your building in a different way.
Dave Ulrich – Controls Manager – Electric Company of Omaha
“Online, on the computer, from your house, hotel room, anywhere with internet you can connect to the system.”
The system – Dave was referring to looks just like this – this is an H-VAC user interface. From here, all aspects of a buildings heating and air conditioning system can be controlled.
Andrew Vaughn builds interfaces, like this one, for building owners and managers to use.
Andrew Vaughn – Graphics and Technology Specialist – Electric Company of Omaha
“We give our customers the ability to control and the ability to see different set points. So over here we have the ability to change the percentage the dampers open in multiples of 10. So right now we have it set at about 60 percent. I can go in and change it to 50. And over here we are showing it at about 50 percent of what it would be open. Over here we have a damper override so if they need to close the damper completely they could do so. They could also override it completely open, whichever they may need, instantaneously. In some cases they may have an emergency where they need to shut the damper right away, because there’s a fire outside, they’ll have the ability to do that.”
You can also increase or decrease the speed of the fans bringing in fresh air from outside. You can turn on or off heat and air conditioning, even add humidity if you want to, from right here.
Electric Company of Omaha also builds interfaces like the one over there – this one controls a building’s lighting – once again, here’s Andrew.
Andrew Vaughn – Graphics and Technology Specialist – Electric Company of Omaha
“Lighting controls are basically the same thing as H-VAC, but it’s more simplified. In this case – these buttons control various lights on the system, we give them a nice map representation so they can see what area they’re controlling. And if they wanted to turn lights on, they just come in and click the button on, like a light switch – and they would turn on. We’ve actually had several situations have needed lights specially turned on and off and instead of having to go on that night and turn lights on and off, we can actually schedule lights coming on and off at certain times. Or if somebody was sitting outside and they had a wireless network they could just sit outside with their laptop and turn it on and off as needed.”
What’s more – this specific interface for lighting controls has an added bonus.
We’ve all seen a city’s skyline at night we all know that lights remain on, even though offices are unoccupied. Having the ability to turn lights off in this case translates directly into the dollars and cents of energy savings.
Andrew Vaughn – Graphics and Technology Specialist – Electric Company of Omaha
“The energy beneficiary of this is the customer because no longer are lights left on all day and someone has to remember to turn them off, you can schedule to do that. We can also add motion sensors. We also have a thing called an astronomical time clock, where by the position of the sun, lights go on and off as needed. Dimming lights we can do that too.”
The explanation of how these systems all get connected comes from Dave Ulrich.
Dave Ulrich – Controls Manager – Electric Company of Omaha
“What we have here are three complete building control systems, every system from retail to a large hospital system, we look at exactly what’s in the building and where we’re going to go with it. The Richard Zeta product we picked up as a good interface into legacy systems, Johnson Control Systems, and gives us the ability to leverage the assets they have in the building. We leave the majority of the equipment there, connect it to the internet, and then as time goes by we connect to the system and we can put whatever interface you want in the system, we can put into that.”
“The Ilon product was one of our first products. It can do H-VAC as well as lighting. It does not do much with legacy products. Right now I have a customer’s website open on the PC there, and we control all of the interior and exterior lighting in the building. We also took over control of a fountain they have outside. We’re controlling the pumps and valves on that system as well. That’s using the Niagara by Tridion there on that computer. You can see the screenshot there. It shows the pumps and the meters and you can adjust that system there.”
Building automation is not a new technology, it has been around for some time – but just recently has it become affordable.
It’s affordability in the market is due in large part to NECA contractors like Electric Company of Omaha and their partnership with IBEW Local 22.
Local 22’s training facility adapts the curriculum to train apprentices and journeymen alike on building automation technology, arming them with the knowledge and skills to install these hi-tech systems right the first time.
It’s been so effective in Omaha for them, that they’re actively taking work away from the competition.
Electric Company has been able to secure two hospital jobs by showing them the advantages of building automation and the cost savings the customer will realize by hiring them without sacrificing any quality or professionalism.
If you’d like more information on building automation and what the NECA-IBEW team can do for you – contact your local NECA chapter office.