Sustainable solutions in 2011 – going beyond lighting sensors

As technology evolves so the capabilities of energy efficient technologies. Big changes lay ahead for the industry of sustainable solutions.

Since mySmart CTI was founded in 2001, we have seen the industry of sustainable solutions evolve dramatically over the years. Then, energy efficiency was still somewhat a novelty and businesses were only just beginning to learn why there was a need for them to start thinking in a more ‘environmentally friendly’ way.

Now, eleven years later, with the ongoing rise in energy prices at the forefront of everyone’s mind, businesses no longer need to be encouraged to act – the financial incentive is clear. However, they do still need to be educated as to where to start and the possibilities of what can be achieved.

Those outside the industry still somewhat assume energy efficient technologies  are solely lighting sensors and blinds when, in reality, current electrical capabilities have the ability to make sustainable buildings so much more.  As we move into 2011, energy efficiency is now about complete building management and converged systems. This is a result of the increased adoption of open source protocols for intelligent buildings in the Australian smart technology market.

Open source protocols allow convergence between various sustainable solutions – allowing for more functional operations in the commercial space. Converged solutions enable us to deliver complete building and energy management systems and, in turn, from our experience enable building owners to save a couple of hundred hours’ energy use each year – removing a lot of the anxiety around electricity bills.

In a world where technology dictates our every move, we have become accustomed to our phones, computers, the internet and television, all communicating and working together. As a result of this, the expectation is now set for this connectivity to transfer to built environments.

Through the use of converged systems, new technologies such as sub-metering systems, sustainability indicators, automated blinds and presence detector devices (to name a few) can now operate on one single cable platform enabling all systems to communicate effectively together. Convergence for commercial buildings allows us to make energy efficiency straightforward and easily achievable for facility managers  – simplifying the whole process of sustainability.

Another trend beginning to gain momentum is the adoption of Intelligent Building Management Systems (IBMS) – a single computing system controlling everything from one point, in turn allowing easier functionality and management of building controls. The provision of managed services – the outsourcing of monitoring and managing the IBMS – also provides peace of mind that the building’s controls are being continually refined to ensure that it is operating at peak performance.

Converged systems essentially allow a building to be ‘future-proofed’, therefore, making it ready to accommodate extensions, upgrades, or even complete changes in building usage requirements, with ease. Businesses are seeing a quick return on investment thus fast realising the benefits of installing these protocols. Also, increasingly we are seeing smaller buildings adopt these technologies, whereas, to date it has been predominantly larger buildings.

The last ten years has brought much change to the industry and there is no doubt the next ten will do the same. As technology evolves, so do the capabilities of energy efficient technologies. We predict converged solutions will become even more widespread and with it we have no doubt that the assumption the industry is limited to lighting sensors and dimmers will change significantly.
 

Scott Warren joined Complete Technology Integrations (CTI) in 2001 as Director & Technical/Operations. He has driven the company through significant growth including the establishment in 2004 of sister company, mySmart, in which Scott also holds the role of Director. mySmart have completed major projects with organisations including Fairfax Digital and Taroonga Zoo. Prior to joining CTI and mySmart, Scott held the role of Integration Specialist at SAS Technologies, where he was responsible for designing, programming and commissioning smart homes as well as new business development.