Oct 30 2007
AirAdvice, Inc. has launched BuildingAdvice, the anticipated next generation in wireless building performance diagnostic systems.
BuildingAdvice is a powerful, yet easy-to-use platform that offers a web-enabled system of networked sensors integrated with energy modeling software to:
- Quickly rate the energy performance of commercial buildings
- Identify opportunities for reducing energy costs and improving the efficiency of HVAC systems
- Accurately calculate the return on investment for proposed energy conservation measures
"In our research with building owners and facilities managers, we kept hearing the need for help in reducing energy consumption and comfort complaints," says Tim Kensok, director of business development at AirAdvice. "The BuildingAdvice platform enables contractors and facilities managers to quickly see which buildings offer opportunities for significant improvements that address these important drivers."
Wireless sensors communicating via a ZigBee® mesh network to a cellular-enabled gateway enable building performance parameters to be easily accessed, completely independent of the building infrastructure. This is important in applications where no building automation system exists, or where access to the system is not readily available.
In addition to the sensor and wireless communications technology, the BuildingAdvice platform integrates comprehensive energy modeling, analysis, and reporting features. EnGen™, the BuildingAdvice platform's patent-pending energy model generation software, automatically combines building background data (utility bills, usage profile, and HVAC system information) with continuous real-time sensor data (temperature, humidity, carbon dioxide, light levels) to produce an energy model of the building that is calibrated to the actual weather conditions and energy consumption for the prior 12 months. This approach offers significant advantages in accuracy and simplicity compared to other, more theoretical building models.
"Using actual weather and utility bills as inputs to our model ensures that when we calculate the potential for energy savings, we're starting from a real-world baseline," says Kensok. "It makes tasks like ranking the energy performance of a portfolio of buildings easy, and provides objective, quantifiable savings estimates."
The BuildingAdvice platform automatically generates reports that summarize the building performance assessment and provide a return on investment (ROI) analysis to support proposed energy conservation measures, greatly accelerating the decision-making and resolution process. In addition, BuildingAdvice users have access to ongoing specialized training, technology and business development coaching, go-to-market materials, web-based tools, and other resources that ensure successful system utilization and support building performance growth strategies.
"I'm looking forward to using the [BuildingAdvice next generation wireless system," says Steve Hatheway, Siemens energy engineer. "[It will help me rapidly identify building optimization and efficiency improvement opportunities for my commercial customers. If I can calculate ROI and energy savings for the proposal automatically, I can qualify and close complex upgrade and optimization projects much quicker."