SMART

BUILDINGS

How Facility Managers can

reduce Opex and increase
bottom line

Discover how smart solutions offer predictive,

proactive HVAC, remoting monitoring & more

A Publication of 75F
TABLE OF CONTENTS

Chapter 1: Why Paying Attention to HVAC & Lighting Pays

Off

Chapter 2: Energy Management Systems

Chapter 3: Internet of Things + Cloud Computing

Chapter 4: Remote Monitoring

Conclusion
CHAPTER ONE
WHY PAYING ATTENTION TO
HVAC & LIGHTING PAYS OFF
CHAPTER 1

With factors like climate change and changing demands of

Millennial workforce, and sheer increasing demand for
energy there is no better time than now to focus on making
your Building more comfortable, efficient and smart.

Moreover, Energy consumption by commercial facilities is

often extreme. In fact, 50% of the energy consumed in
a typical commercial building is wasted due to
inefficient use, according to World Energy Outlook.

So how can you as a Facility Director or Facility Manager curb

that excessive waste?
CHAPTER 1

You can do so by addressing one of the biggest money

hogs. HVAC and Lighting together represent up to
60% of the energy being consumed in a commercial
office. Thats a significant number and if reduced, that
money will contribute to your bottom line and your
sustainability objectives.
CHAPTER 1

Understanding
your buildings
HVAC & Lighting
systems can
provide insight
into savings
opportunities.

Know your buildings HVAC & Lighting.

60% + of your energy costs stem from HVAC and Lighting.
Understanding what your monthly energy bill is, allows you to
understand how much your building can save.
A typical HVAC unit consumes 1KW of power per ton of
cooling. Note older units are less efficient.
Maintenance is expensive. Ignoring necessary service calls
can result in emergency visits, shorter equipment life and
disruptive restaurant downtime.
Its impossible to manage what you dont measure.
CHAPTER TWO
ENERGY MANAGEMENT
SYSTEMS (EMS)
CHAPTER 2

What if all your technology was

last updated in 2005?

Traditional Energy Management Systems have been

around since the 1990s and not much has changed. Simply
put, an EMS provides users with the ability to monitor, control
and measure their buildings energy loads. They centrally
control devices like HVAC units and lighting systems across
multiple locations, making them useful for facility managers
who oversee multiple locations. The problem with a
traditional EMS is that the last big refresh was in about 2005,
meaning its been roughly 10 years since new technology has
been applied! Within those years, technology has evolved
significantly, most notably being the birth of cloud computing
and the Internet of Things.
CHAPTER 2

Traditional EMS
systems dont
take into account
variables like
building
orientation or
local weather.

Most EMS companies have not leveraged this evolution in technology

effectively. An EMS is a step up from manually correlating
spreadsheets, but it does not intelligently process or act on the data it
collects in a meaningful way. An EMS was once a great tool for
consolidating information and reviewing energy usage trends, while
comparing them across multiple sites. Whats blatantly missing,
however, is that they have very little localization knowledge. That is
to say that an EMS knows the address of your building, but does not
know its orientation, building usage pattern, or local weather. A simple
thing like orientation can make a huge difference in regards to how
much energy is being used.

With an EMS, its left upon the user to go back and determine what
energy usage patterns are occurring in a building and then do the
correlation across their building portfolio. With the technology
available today, there is no reason why such inefficiencies should
exist.
CHAPTER THREE
INTERNET OF THINGS (IOT) + CLOUD
COMPUTING = REAL CHANGE
CHAPTER 3

IOT + CLOUD COMPUTING

The birth of IoT and cloud computing allow us to build

predictive, proactive systems that make buildings more
energy efficient. Not only that, but these systems are
intelligent enough to keep employees comfortable and
productive. Why use a high end excel spreadsheet when
you can access technology that drives real change on its
own?
CHAPTER 3

Cloud computing has been a real game changer, allowing more data
points to be collected, stored and analyzed in a meaningful
timeframe. For reference, a typical EMS today takes into account 15-
20 control points, typically within a 5-15 minute segment. On the
generous side, that breaks down to tracking only 2 control points
every 30 seconds. In comparison, a predictive solution that
leverages cloud based algorithms can log hundreds of variables
every minute! A truly smart solution will factor in not only air temp,
but factors like humidity and your buildings geographical orientation.
IoT and cloud computing enable building automation, which is truly
building intelligence.
CHAPTER 3

The result is a smart solution that enables commercial buildings to

function more efficiently, save more energy and even make
occupants more comfortable. In fact, research states that
temperature inconsistencies impact employee productivity by 8-10%.
A smart solution will know when a conference room is full, or if a
certain part of your office needs more cooling because of the position
of the sun and proactively regulate temps to keep employees
comfortable and energy costs low.

INCREASE COMFORT, SAVE ENERGY

Predictive solutions are proven to save more energy. In 2015 a

nationally recognized third party verification lab began a multiyear
comparative study to examine the performance of an up-to-date
programmable thermostat, which has been programmed for optimum
efficiency within the given conditions. It compares those findings
against a predictive, proactive system and the results are staggering.
CHAPTER 3

This graph
represents the
amount of
energy it took
for a
programmable
thermostat and
a predictive
system to reach
the desired
temperature.

Gas use for baseline and dynamic air balancing operation

(dynamic system-only) was compared across the range of
Heating Degree Day (HDD). Gas use by the North RTU was
reduced by 27% and by 25% for the South RTU. Dynamic air
balancing with Demand Control Ventilation operation provided
an incremental energy savings, between 35% to 55% above
the savings from dynamic system-only operation, which
matches published data on DCV energy savings.

Gas Technology study

CHAPTER 3

Predictive solutions still provide you with all the valuable

information that an EMS would and then some. A proactive
solution will show you more than just energy
usage. Performance evaluation provides insight into
equipment performance, which can help predict equipment
failures and verify service actions. This drives even further
efficiency and helps increase your bottom line.
CHAPTER FOUR
REMOTE MONITORING
CHAPTER 4

Maybe you oversee one facility, maybe you oversee

hundreds. Regardless, its equally important to see and
understand how your buildings behave whether youre
standing in the conference room or flying across the country.
A smart system enables you to see into your
building from anywhere on the planet. Dont have
your computer? An iPhone or Android will also do the trick.

Ever initiate a service call that ended up addressing the

wrong piece of equipment? This left you feeling frustrated
because you wasted valuable time and money . Smart
solutions are all about cutting down on the guessing game
and providing you real insight to whats working and whats
not.
CHAPTER 4

If you oversee many facilities, features like a global

policy editor allow you to make updates to
hundreds of facilities with the push of a button. This
is notably more efficient than calling all your local Facility
Managers to make needed adjustments!
CONCLUSION
CONCLUSION

SMARTER + MORE EFFICIENT

As a Facility Director or Manager, you are tasked with meeting
sustainability goals and reducing overheads. Because commercial
buildings are so energy intensive, its important to think through ways
to cut costs and increase efficiency. Finding smart ways to meet
these goals, while increasing occupant comfort is sure to
make you a superhero to your employees and boss.

Traditional Energy Management Systems have been around since the

1990s and not much has changed. They still require a person to
evaluate energy usage patterns in your facilities and then do the
correlation across the whole portfolio. With the technology available
today, there is no reason why such inefficiencies should exist.
CONCLUSION

The birth of IoT and cloud computing allow us to build

predictive, proactive systems that make commercial
buildings more energy efficient. These same smart systems
are intelligent enough to keep employees more comfortable
and productive. Increased comfort and reduced energy
costs are a no-brainer.

Lastly, whether you oversee one facility or hundreds, its

important to understand how your facilities behave. You
cannot manage what you dont monitor. A smart system
enables you to see into your building from anywhere on the
planet, thanks to cloud computing and IoT.
Evaluating the Benefits of a
Smart Building?
Smart buildings benefit you in many ways. Deepinder Singh, our
CEO and founder, recently had the opportunity to present at
Centerpoint's Energy Efficiency and Technology Conference.
There he communicated the benefits that a smart building can
bring in terms of energy savings, employee comfort and
productivity..

See the Video -

'Benefits of a
Smart Building
A Publication of 75F