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CentraLine, c/o Honeywell GmbH Ansel & Möllers GmbH
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CentraLine organizes the first
eu-bac system auditor training for Sedical, its partner in Spain
For the first time in Spain, a system-integrating company, CentraLine’s Partner Sedical, was trained and certified by eu.bac engineers. This training enables Sedical to help its customers meeting their needs in the area of energy saving. The energy efficiency of a building or a project can be shown to the building owners or investors in a structured way, based on a European norm, and helps to plan improvements and investments.
eu.bac, the European Building Automation and Controls Association, has developed a tool based on European norm EN 15232, which awards points on a scale of 0 to 100 (equivalent to an F-AA classification) and issues a certificate for building automation and control systems for existing and planned buildings. Almost all European building automation manufacturers belong to this association.
Meeting the increasing needs of the customer in the area of energy conservation
Sedical, a system-integrating company, was founded in 1977 and currently has twelve branch offices, six exclusive distributors and ten authorized service partners. Its headquarters are in Sondika, northern Spain. The purpose of the course was to train control specialists to become eu.bac auditors. Auditors not only rate the technology installed in the building, but also check that it is operating properly. On passing the exam the employees become qualified auditors. From then on they can audit control systems using eu.bac methodology. Once the audit has been completed, if the owner of the building so wishes, the report can be sent to eu.bac, which authorises it and issues an energy rating certificate for the automation and control system installed.
Fig. 1: Employees of Sedical were trained as eu.bac Junior Auditors.
Using the audit findings, building owners can discuss possible changes to the control strategy with their system integrators and review the weak points highlighted by the report. In this way they can improve the efficiency of their system with the most economic investment. When suggesting improvements to the automation and control system, the calculation tool ascertains which areas of the system are the ones where investment will generate the best results. This is done by identifying the sub-systems with the greatest potential for improvement. The tool also helps to estimate the amount of savings that investments will generate as well as calculate payback periods, which is helpful when it comes to making a decision.
At the moment building owners and engineering companies do not have access to any other reliable standard that ensures that a new building design or renovation project has the best automation and control technology for energy conservation. Similarly, this standard, which is validated through periodic audits, will continue to guarantee efficiency throughout the life of the building, confirming not only that the best energy-saving technology has been installed, but also that it is getting the greatest potential out of the automation and control system.
Fig. 2: This was the first time that eu.bac has delivered a training course for eu.bac auditors in building automation and control systems in Spain.
An overview
In times of continually climbing energy prices and of increasing awareness of ecological issues among the general public, everybody is talking about energy efficiency. But what is actually required to make the operation of a building energy efficient? In most cases the focus is on structural physics (e.g. heat insulation) and on energy generation (e.g. heat pumps, combined-heat-and-power schemes). This is followed by the systems used by the energy consumer (e.g. convector heaters, underfloor heating, heat recovery, high-efficiency pumps etc.) and the use of energy-reducing equipment (e.g. shading). What is often overlooked though is the influence of building automation and in particular the continuous adaptation of timer-triggered programs and parameters to changed usage and conditions. Building automation is the mechanism that coordinates the installed technical systems and supplies the data from any monitoring that has been carried out as well as any analysis of the operating status. It is the brains of the building and therefore performs a vital role in optimising a building's energy efficiency levels. It is the convergence point of the various functions associated with the operation of the building, each requiring their own specialists. As a result engineering in this area is extremely demanding and also requires the relevant data from all of the integrated functions (for instance which energy generator achieves the best degree of effectiveness under which conditions).
Fig.3: The demands on energy-efficient buildings are considerable because of the various functions that are involved or that need to be considered.
Equally, when changes are made to the building, an extensive adjustment to the running of the control technology can be necessary. For this reason, in the desire to maximise energy efficiency, it is essential that a building's operations receive ongoing support through control engineering. Such support can only be provided in the context of strong customer relationships of the type mostly offered by not-too-large measurement and control companies. This is also the advantage of partner systems, such as CentraLine in this field.
Fairly often, older buildings have complex control systems in place which, owing to minor defects or a change of usage, operate at far below their energy-saving potential. Finding these, removing them or even using modifications and extensions to improve them is a demanding task but one that yields financial rewards. But how should such a highly complex procedure of controls be recorded and evaluated, and how should a link be established to a monetary figure - in other words euros - for cost savings.
The eu.bac system certification classifies buildings
After gaining experience in the field of device certification, eu.bac, the European Building Automation and Controls Association, which currently comprises 95% of European building automation manufacturers, decided to create a system certification for buildings. eu.bac is a structured, standardised and scientifically-tested method which ensures that building-automation systems are installed and operate in a sustainable and energy-efficient way while providing optimal comfort. It shows the building automation's contribution to overall energy efficiency and evaluates this amount. This certification is modelled closely on DIN EN 15232; however, a more exact classification (from AA to E) was chosen, and more attention was also given to continuity and functional integrity. This is because building automation is very susceptible to energy-efficiency levels sinking drastically over the course of time because of, among other things, changes to usage, building alterations and defects that have escaped attention. Furthermore, eu.bac certification is to be expanded to include evaluations for individual rooms (which will then be listed in the result according to share of the total) instead of for the building as a whole, as is the case with some other analyses.
Fig. 4: The system certification used by eu.bac classifies buildings from AA to E.
Content of the training
The training course, which was held at Sedical, included facts about the EPBD (Energy Performance of Buildings Directive) and EN 15232, as well as about the methodology and about the BACS system evaluation (Building Automation and Control System). On the agenda were topics that every auditor has to check in a building. These include the controlling of heating and domestic hot water supply as well as cooling, ventilation and air conditioning and lighting and blinds. Additional topics were technical building management, the new eu.bac key performance indicators (KPIs), eu.bac extended functionality and eu.bac certified products. The eu.bac check-list not only includes building automation, but also building management (monitoring, analysis, etc.), which is partly also captured by the KPIs. A specific definition of the certifiable KPIs is included in the eu.bac documents. With this aid, equipment can be monitored continuously even by personnel who are not highly qualified. CentraLine offers a large range of meters and software in the energy-monitoring field which are also excellent at recognising errors and analysing possible improvements.
Fig. 5: All established facts relating to building automation are to be entered into this table
Once all the data has been entered, the overall evaluation is then supplied. Because of the way the tool is clearly divided into categories such as heating, cooling and lighting, it is very easy to identify flaws across the various areas so that this inventory also shows the additional steps with a reference to their importance in facility optimisation.
Summary of the system certification according to eu.bac
The eu.bac system certification is a very helpful tool for obtaining quality assessments from existing or from planned building automation systems. The expected energy savings can at least be estimated using the points system. At one to two days, the approximate time that this takes is within reason. An additional useful feature is the option to run changes as simulations in the eu.bac check-list, making it possible, in the case of any adjustments to the system, to estimate the expected improvements in energy usage across the different fields. In so doing the percentage saving in energy usage, shown using points, is demonstrated empirically with simulations on typical buildings (the type of building, e.g. "office building," is given in the check-list). This, of course, is just a guide, since the buildings differ markedly from one another in terms of their physical and site-specific properties.
The biggest advantage of the certification, however, is that it serves as an impetus to be able to repeatedly check the entire system and to uncover any errors. A building is a "living thing," which adapts to the demands put on it. It can therefore be logically deduced that the building management system must also be integrated into this process of constant adjustment.
Author
Fig. 6: Hannes Lütz, Product Manager CentraLine by Honeywell
Pictures: CentraLine (1, 2, 3, 5, 6) and eu.bac (4). Reprint free of charge if picture source mentioned.
Text box - Building Audit
An initial building audit is the entry point to the eu.bac certification process. This audit can only be carried out by a recognized eu.bac auditor, and the completed check-list with any relevant notes and comments is then to be handed in to eu.bac. eu.bac then checks for any discrepancies (clarifying these where it can), registers the building-automation system in its database and issues the certificate. This certificate is valid for a limited period only (maximum five years) which means that the first periodic audit should take place by then at the latest if the certification is to be received. The purpose of this process is not just to detect faults and defective functions but also to continuously improve the building automation system or the technical building services based on the flaws uncovered by the audits.
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