Understanding Your EMS and Identifying Trends on the Horizon

Jun 12, 18 | HVACR Industry & Tech Tips, Industry Trends, Tech Tips

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Squeezing the most efficiency out of your energy management system (EMS) can be a pivotal part of your operation. Many store and franchise operators are only using around 10–20 percent of the overall power of their EMS. Optimizing your systems and getting your “money’s worth” out of your EMS can reduce energy and maintenance costs and potentially lower energy consumption.

 

Metrics

 

To fully understand what an EMS does and how it can benefit you, a helpful comparison can be made by looking at the progression of automotive technologies. For example, today we are accustomed to our cars nearly being able to drive themselves (some can). That evolution began as industry leaders started incorporating electronics into vehicles to benefit drivers — things like an analog braking system that was connected to engine control modules which were connected to traction control systems. Manufacturers are blending these systems together, improving communication and thereby optimizing vehicles.

An EMS, essentially, follows the same sort of ideology, tying together key systems and the architectural layers of your operation. These start with the control layer, where electronics take sensor inputs and determine what actions to take with that information (turning on/off compressors, fans, etc.). Next, the supervisory layer handles things like data logging, bringing the data from different systems together and storing it for you to evaluate and analyze over a given time frame (days, weeks, months, etc.) — and generating alarms for anomalies and other problems.

Finally, the remote layer, or remote system, is a software platform (or something similar) that communicates with your on-site equipment and gathers data that you can view via a remote user interface to see trends in your operations. Obviously, this is key to your ability to manage all this information from a location away from your actual operation.

As your EMS continually collects data, it is important for you to make the most of that data and understand how your EMS can help you identify trends and improve the way your facility operates. Optimizing your EMS grants you visibility into what’s happening at any particular site within your building/enterprise. Average operational expenses for a supermarket are incredibly high, so knowing how to interpret data provided by an EMS allows you to solve your problems quickly and efficiently.

Several trends regarding smart buildings and EMS technology have emerged in recent years, including: building energy management hitting the “cloud,” increased demand for smart building products, the convergence of building communications protocols, and the blurring of the interface between smart buildings and the smart grid. These trends tend to drive innovation in four key areas: user interface and usability, integration, cloud connectivity, and extensibility and apps.

For a more in-depth look at what an EMS can offer your operation and to hear more trends, be sure to watch the full presentation here.