Consulting-Specifying Engineer - October 2008 - (Page 35)

1 Identify, and then identify again For successful implementation of system integration, a series of steps must be followed. Many facilities require internal and external resources. Therefore, facility managers should first seek corporate support of the concept—a champion, such as the board of trustees—that will buy into the aims of sharing system technology and the methodology to achieve it, and back up the program with funding. Facilities then need to identify operating personnel who will be specifically dedicated to BAS. The formation of a dedicated BAS project team comprising on-site facility personnel and BAS design professionals is ideal. On-site personnel will be responsible for the implementation and operation of the BAS. A knowledgeable design engineer who understands the needs of integrated systems design should be engaged to consult on and develop the design. It is also essential to determine the performance requirements—that is, what the facility wants to obtain for each system—as well as the overall performance level desired from system integration. Design engineers working with facility managers need to help identify the systems that may be candidates for integration. These might include numerous systems that operate within their unique facility environment, such as lighting, elevators, ventilation, heating and cooling systems, electrical and emergency power systems, critical monitoring systems, life safety, and security systems. Once the systems to integrate have been determined, design engineers working with facility managers must identify which strategies to employ to optimize system interoperability. This process includes defining and itemizing specific point information for key groups, and identifying what information is to be shared—what is essential to each system facility operator and what is extraneous. Monitoring of various systems is another key decision. Which systems will be monitored as part of the integration process? Utilities can be metered and submetered, for example, to determine performance levels. In addition, how facility managers use integration to distribute energy costs properly must also be established. The design should allow for the partitioning of systems to attribute the correct costs to the various users and distribute the overhead among different branches of the facility’s operations. To make the integrated system function at its best, always consider monitoring system components by gauging its operating efficiency. 2 Communication protocols Communication protocols are the heart of interoperability. The optimum communication protocol for the project must be identified. This exercise should be done by an experienced design engineer or system integrator. Currently, three chief standards have been established and are in wide proliferation within the building automation industry: BACNet, LonWorks, and Modbus. BACnet—Building Automation Control Network, one of the earliest attempts to allow systems to communicate on a single network—was developed to meet open protocol standards set by ASHRAE and currently is used by many equipment manufacturers. LonWorks, developed independently by the Echelon Corp., is a protocol based on a neuron chip. Equipment containing this chip carries its unique characteristics and is able to communicate with the corresponding software in the automation system. The Modbus protocol was developed by Modicon in 1979. Modbus uses a messaging structure to establish a master-slave and/or client-server communication link between different manufacturers’ equipment. It is widely used as a network protocol in the industrial manufacturing environment and is typically used as the de facto communication interface to emergency generators, modular chillers, power management, and supervisory control and data acquisition systems. All of these protocols can be used in conjunction with Transmission Control Protocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP). When in doubt, specify TCP/IP TCP/IP is a communications protocol that binds everything on the Internet. Along with an ethernet communication cabling plant, it ensures that any building designed today will be ready for Internet technologies of the future. Incorporating this protocol into the design of the building’s infrastructure permits communication between systems not only within 3 Consulting-Specifying Engineer • OCTOBER 2008 35

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Consulting-Specifying Engineer - October 2008 Contents Viewpoint Letters News M/E Roundtable Cities Under One Roof Eight Design Tips for Integration Is 'Green' Really New? Down the Drain Product of the Year Awards Codes & Standards Case Study New Products Equipment Lifecycles Advertiser Index Green Space

Consulting-Specifying Engineer - October 2008

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