High-Performance Buildings & Automation

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Last month’s column introduced the concept of giving “too much control” to the building operators through the BAS graphic.

Sustainability represents many themes to many people. While some have a vested interest in maintaining continued success, others are committed to sustaining for the common good, whether it’s the elimination of poverty, preserving the environment, or other valuable causes.

Ten years ago, the name Alexa was a mere spec on the baby-naming landscape. Today, more than one-third of Americans are uttering the name (or the names of its voice-controlled cousins) every day to control the technology within their living spaces. 

Many K-12 schools today are creating more effective and safer learning environments for their students and staff by enabling their buildings to work harder for them.

Imagine a world where all HVAC equipment, (i.e chillers, variable frequency drives etc.), all BAS sensors, various components of the electrical systems (i.e electrical panels, meters, lighting fixtures etc.), and various components of all other infrastructure systems are connected to a shared, non-proprietary network that integrates the functionality of each system.

For decades, commercial buildings consisted of four walls and a roof. Over time, simple structures evolved into smart buildings, adding computerized control systems.

These days, everyone seems to want a smart building, but taking the desire for a smart building and turning it into a design is difficult to say the least.

The idea for this month’s topic was hatched during a retro-commissioning project, but it offers lessons to be applied to new construction commissioning.

Last month, I discussed the benefits of HVAC infrastructure design-build (DB) opportunities for HVAC consulting firms and HVAC contractors. The two main reasons for pursuing DB HVAC infrastructure projects were twofold:

 ATLANTA — ASHRAE is poised for a busy year in 2019. At its 2019 Winter Conference in Atlanta, the 56,000-member engineering association introduced a lengthy agenda that included renovation of a new net-zero world headquarters, the signing of a memorandum of understanding with the Pakistan HVACR Society (PHVACR), a pledge to prepare building professionals for the challenges and opportunities of designing efficient and grid-responsive buildings within the changing energy sector, and more.