In recent times, we’ve witnessed increased focus on sustainability and energy efficiency as worthwhile goals for the built environment, but making buildings run more efficiently from an energy perspective stands out as one of the most pressing challenges, says Mark McGonigle of SPIE UK
According to the WEF, buildings are responsible for 40% of global energy consumption and 33% of greenhouse gas emissions. Suffice to say, many buildings in use today do not run efficiently and contribute a sizable amount to these figures.
Building energy efficiency into new construction projects, as well as retooling existing buildings for better energy efficiencies, will require managing resources and energy more effectively. This will demand an ongoing commitment to energy efficiency through the expansion of energy waste auditing, broader and deeper data analysis and engineering solutions, and proactive rather than reactive action on energy waste.
Auditing on-site energy waste
Typically, buildings have some form of building management system (BMS) in place to help manage the facility, which gives facilities managers a single, centralised system through which to oversee and control all building operations, from lighting and HVAC to security systems and lifts. A BMS can also make it possible to automate operations to some extent, such as scheduling heating and lighting systems to turn on and off at certain times.
Many building managers face obstacles when it comes to auditing onsite energy usage in order to improve energy efficiencies. Often, BMS systems act as a “black box” of sorts, with many building managers having little visibility over key metrics, data and the functioning of the systems. As a result, energy audits on buildings have even found BMS systems bypassed entirely, with equipment set to “hand” mode – meaning equipment like boilers or air handling units would run 24/7 – resulting in significant energy waste.
Another issue is that many buildings are running on significantly dated BMS hardware with unsupported parts and equipment, which cannot connect effectively with energy platforms.
Resolving these problems requires amalgamating various energy data inputs and joining up legacy systems to gauge energy use with a high degree of accuracy. This can help diagnose a problem, such as a specific fan running at a higher speed versus other fans in a building, which increases energy demands and subsequently reduces the energy efficiency of the building. As part of any energy waste audit, it’s important that the first step taken is understanding more deeply which assets are using more energy, which allows remedial steps to be taken.
Deeper data analysis & engineering is the future of building management solutions
With the rise in energy costs, building and site managers of all flavours are feeling the pressure to manage buildings in an energy-efficient and sustainable manner. Many BMS systems today, however, have limited capabilities and cannot provide much value beyond simple scheduling and automation.
Recently, Building Energy Management Systems (BEMS) applications have appeared in the facilities management industry which are designed to grant facilities managers the ability to monitor all systems and to control them centrally. This includes managing the dimming of lights, for example, or redirecting energy sources to run on battery storage rather than utility generation, and beyond.
As a result, BEMS optimisation audits have increasingly become commonplace to tackle the challenge of “energy drift” over time to help mitigate unmanaged changes to resolve short-term problems, such as a mechanical failure or a temporary change in occupation.
While this advanced functionality is easier to build into new buildings, energy management is also increasingly moving towards Internet of Things (IoT) based energy platforms as the future of building management solutions. This can be seen as the next stage in the evolution of the building management system.
How to improve the energy efficiency of buildings
The key to improving energy efficiency is to ensure consistent monitoring and reporting of data over time to make decisions based on that data but also to avoid being reactive and be proactive where possible. Building energy surveys, the introduction of an energy management platform, behavioural analysis and lifecycle analysis are all tools and methodologies that allow facilities managers to make sure they only use as much energy as is required.
As the rate of technological adoption by building systems managers evolves, energy tracking tools such as IoT sensors will become increasingly important in helping facilities managers reduce the need for onsite visits and carbon emissions associated with travelling, which will help drive up the overall level of energy efficiency in the building.
Remote monitoring capabilities are increasingly in use to track inputs such as water temperatures, so it is worth connecting this data to building management systems so it can be tracked on an ongoing basis and action taken accordingly.
However, one of the biggest chasms to bridge is that of education and helping building managers throughout different sectors understand the value of implementing energy management systems. What gets measured gets managed as the saying goes, so educating key stakeholders on the value of understanding and tracking this data can prove the difference between successful building energy efficiency efforts and unnecessary waste. Demystifying energy management for building managers is therefore key, so relying on a trusted partner who specialises in helping implement such solutions can help bridge the gap.
Mark McGonigle
Energy manager
SPIE UK
Tel: +44 (0)345 034 8645
