Commercial Architecture July 2017 - 61

PROJECT

building automation

Connecting your building-automation
system to the cloud can make
continuous commissioning possible.

Put Your BAS In The Cloud
There are several advantages to maintaining building-automation-system data in
cloud-based systems, but ask yourself some questions first.
Kevin Callahan and Nikhil Deulkar, Alerton

M

any aspects of the high-tech industry are

plications, and services, that can be rapidly provisioned

the ability to upscale (or downscale) your computing

discussed in quasi-religious or mystical

and released with minimal management effort or ser-

power almost as your needs change. This eliminates the

terms. Consider the tech journalist who

vice-provider interaction."

need to forecast your computing needs months or a

described massive data centers as the "physical embodi-

In other words, rather than relying on the computing

year in advance, and lowers your need to invest in cost-

ment of the Internet," as if the Internet was some kind of

power and memory of your organization's own comput-

ly on-site servers and other computing infrastructure.

spiritual entity instead of a bunch of sophisticated equip-

ers-whether desktop machines or on-site servers-you

In short, the cloud helps you reduce capital expendi-

ment. The same thing is happening with offsite comput-

access remote computers through the internet to accom-

tures for on-premise computing, as well as the operat-

ing, where the new-age-sounding term "the cloud" is used

plish business needs.

ing expense of maintaining those computers.

to describe other people's computers-albeit numerous
very powerful computers.
The downside of such terms is that the hype can ob-

Before describing the specific benefits the cloud pro-

What does that look like in practical terms? Say you're

vides for BAS, it is helpful to summarize the cloud's

the facility-operations manager for a university. Over

broad benefits. These include:

time, your BAS data storage needs will likely increase as

scure the very real benefits offered by the technologies.

* Bulk computing power: The most obvious benefit of

new buildings are added or upgraded, but for months or

In the case of cloud computing, relying on massive com-

the cloud is the ability to store reams of data without

years at a time your data demands might taper or even

puting power managed by others can provide tangible

having to invest in your own massive data center. As

decline somewhat as buildings are closed for refurbish-

advantages when it comes to data-intensive applications

business functions, ranging from operations to market-

ment or demolition. With a subscription from a cloud-ser-

such as building-automation systems (BAS).

ing to facility management, generate ever more data to

vice provider, you pay for just the right amount of com-

be analyzed, the cloud provides a place to store and

puting power and can adjust very quickly. It is the

THE CLOUD IN SHORT

process that data. Even so, a more important benefit of

just-in-time inventory model applied to computers.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology

the cloud for BAS than bulk storage and computing

* Simple, remote maintenance. As with many out-

(NIST, Gaithersburg, MD) describes cloud computing

power is the flexibility and adaptability the cloud pro-

sourced services, a benefit of cloud computing is trans-

as "a model for enabling ubiquitous, convenient, on-de-

vides building owners and operators.

ferring certain headaches to someone else who can

mand network access to a shared pool of configurable

* Right sizing: A key advantage of having access to mon-

likely do the work better and cheaper. With the cloud,

computing resources, e.g., networks, servers, storage, ap-

strous amounts of computer storage and processing is

you outsource the expense and hassles of ensuring reli-

commercialarchitecturemagazine.com

JULY 2017

COMMERCI A L A RCHI T EC T URE

61
http://www.commercialarchitecturemagazine.com
Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Commercial Architecture July 2017
