Big-Picture BAS For Critical Facilities

Not that all facilities aren’t special in their own ways, but … well, you know.

Right here at the top, I want to tell you that this issue is sporting one of the better collections of columns that I can recall in ES. On the harder engineering side, Paul Ehrlich gets behind the scenes of the preliminary sleuthing to be done when you’re hunting for better BAS performance. In the back, Howard McKew renews his look at how to handle the awkward but almost surely inevitable territory of finding some fault in a fellow engineer’s work.

And on the commissioning front, Rebecca Ellis draws a distinction with “Just Because You Can, Doesn’t Mean You Should” that you don’t see often if ever: if the owner wants to sign up for a more sophisticated system than he’s truly prepared to operate (regardless of what the owner says or believes at the time), then the building is probably not headed toward its best possible performance. Is the client always right?

The trio of columns delivers some nuanced angles in pursuit of the most basic perpetual goals. I’m proud to be able to bring these engineers’ insights to you.

WHOLE-BUILDING TACTICS ON OUR CRITICAL FACILITIES MICROSITE

Speaking of bringing engineers to you, our (relatively) new Critical Facilities microsite will feature a new white paper this month, courtesy of Carlos Petty, Associate Partner with the team at Syska Hennessy Group.

It’s actually the first of two scheduled additions over the next couple of months, but the lead paper is titled, “Integrated Automated Controls for Data Centers: Philosophy & Approach.” Does that sound relevant?

Let’s take a quick look at some topics addressed therein.

Programmable logic controllers for plant equipment
Power quality monitoring
Electrical power distribution monitoring
System-to-system integration
Instant alarm forwarding/notification software
Security access control / CCTV
Lighting
Ventilation
IAQ
Cabling

And more. The idea with this microsite, in conjunction with some of our recent print and webinar emphasis on standby power, is to give you some more whole-building information for the care and feeding of a critical facility of any sort. Check out this and a variety of earlier content on our Critical Facilities microsite here.

Got an article, white paper, or event that you think would be a good fit for this editorial avenue? Drop me a note.