30 Energy Saving Equipment The right solution, not a quick solution
Commercial buildings are having a tough time at the moment and for those who own or manage them it is probably beginning to feel as though your building is under siege from new measures and legislation at every turn. Scott McGavin of Mitsubishi Electric explains.
ROM A LEGISLATIVE point of view, the new rules regarding F-gases in air conditioning equipment are forcing through the use of less harmful alternatives and gradually eliminating R22 from the picture. Then there is the impending deadline of April 2018, which is the cut off point for all commercial buildings that are let to reach a minimum energy rating of E. In addition, the government has set the target for all non-domestic buildings to be zero carbon in 2019. If that wasn’t enough, the Energy Savings Opportunities Scheme (ESOS) also makes it mandatory for companies who employ more than 250 employees to undertake an ESOS Assessment. This will force large firms to take a long hard look at their operations and, while there is no legal requirement to act on the findings, it will more than likely highlight aspects of a building’s operation that will, sooner or later, be required by law to meet certain energy standards.
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Evolution of technology All of these measures have been introduced to cut carbon emissions with the aim of achieving the lofty target of a reduction in the UK by 80 per cent of 1990 levels by the year 2050.
The unstoppable march towards this figure has meant that many manufacturers, particularly in the heating and cooling industry, have developed a more energy efficient suite of products to match the needs of commercial buildings. But these products cannot work in isolation because the way the systems are controlled will play just as great, if not a greater, part in how well they achieve energy savings.
Indeed, any building designer, owner or operator striving to achieve energy efficiency must put building controls at the heart of the programme.
Air conditioning equipment is a perfect example here because the performance capabilities of modern systems are almost seen as a given in terms of the equipment’s energy efficiency. But even the most efficient system still has its limits if it is not controlled correctly.
Advanced smart controls Controls technology is now far more advanced than it has ever been, but while this is great in theory, it can also have its own issues.
ACR News August 2015
Every piece of plant is invariably now constructed with its own control system, but the problem with that is that each of these systems works independently of the others.
It’s like an eight man rowing crew all trying to propel the boat in different directions because the cox has fallen out and none of them are talking to each other.
Better integration and communication is therefore the answer because a controls solution that allows the whole building and all of its plant and services to be visible and controllable is far more effective. The air conditioning, for example, needs to be able to react to different requirements in the building so that factors such as different room sizes, usage and occupancy levels – as well as heat loads from electronic equipment and lighting – can be taken into account.
This type of demand-driven approach can only be achieved if the technology is working together.
Devices such as Mitsubishi Electric’s MelcoBEMS might just provide an answer to this problem because they provide an interface between the Building Energy Management System (BEMS) and plant and services such as the air conditioning via the Modbus or BACnet protocol. This approach ensures peak efficiency because all of the plant and services within
a commercial building can be integrated on one platform and the building owner/ manager is able to view the resultant data, and make any necessary changes, from one single machine.
The technology is there
Over the past few years we have seen huge advances in energy efficient technology and nowhere is this more apparent than in the heating and air conditioning markets - two of the biggest users of energy in our buildings
But as well as specifying the right kit, it must be recognised at the design stage that control of the building is vital to give it a chance of achieving meaningful, long term energy efficiency.
This means finding a better way than just allowing each separately commissioned branch of the services design to operate in splendid isolation with its own controller doing a job that could be far better done with an integrated approach. Designing the integration of these controls into a single Building Energy Management System (BEMS) can be done, and while it may cost more in the first instance, the figures exist in black and white to prove that this approach is the overall winner in the longer term.
www.mitsubishielectric.co.uk
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