12 Ga l a x y C l oud So f t wa r e a s a Se r v i c e f o r Ene r g y Ma n agemen t
Energy costs have been volatile, but the trend
remains remorselessly upwards. Reducing fuel
bills, especially if it can be achieved without
compromising comfort, limits vulnerability to fuel
price fuctuations and makes budgets go further.
Most developed countries have either already
enacted, or are preparing, legislation that
requires publication of verifable data on energy
performance and large public buildings have
been the frst to be required to do so. Countries,
such as the US, that have not made it mandatory
are offering tax incentives for energy reduction.
Many countries now require large energy users to
participate in emissions trading schemes.
Pacifc Controls’ Galaxy platform offers a
straightforward and cost-effective way to reduce
fuel bills and provide verifable data on energy
performance. It is a managed service that pro-
actively monitors assets and provides insight into
how the facility performs, where critical faults lie,
and where opportunities exist to reduce operating
expenses. It also provides the tools for emissions
trading.
3.1 Managing the whole
building eco-system intelligently
can save 30%
Most HVAC systems nowadays have intelligent
control systems, with strategically placed
thermostats that go some of the way to ensuring
effcient use of energy. However, the HVAC system
is usually managed separately from the lighting,
even though lighting is an important source of
heat. Often the maintenance schedule is designed
to keep engineer visits as infrequent as possible,
despite the fact that pro-active maintenance would
reduce energy use.
Lighting is often used wastefully. Designing
light levels carefully, using daylighting where
possible, and turning lights off when light levels
are high enough can save up to 50% of energy
consumption. Occupancy sensors can adjust light
levels and air conditioning when someone enters a
room and outdoor lighting can be timed differently
at different times of the year.
Both lights and HVAC systems are more effcient
when the units are kept clean. Predictive
maintenance, managed by the Galaxy platform,
can reduce energy bills and optimize use of staff
time by scheduling cleaning or replacement of
equipment in batches.
Linking all the separate control systems in the
building, and monitoring them in real time, makes
it possible to optimize the use of HVAC and
lighting systems and eliminate faults. Moreover,
centralized management and reporting allows
facilities managers to set priorities for upgrades
and improvements. Studies of smart buildings in
Austria suggest potential HVAC
energy savings from managing
the building eco-system as a
whole are up to 30% in public
buildings, while savings on
lighting and hot water can add
another 10% or more³.
3.2 The Galaxy SaaS for
energy optimization is
easy to deploy
Pacifc Controls approach to
making existing facilities smarter is very easy to
deploy. Data from existing sensors and control
systems is collated in the on-site unit and
transmitted to the Global Command Control
Center (GCCC) on the Galaxy platform using
machine to machine communication (M2M) across
the local mobile data network, sidestepping
potential diffculties from intervening frewalls or
exposure to the vagaries of the public internet.
The intelligent data management platform in the
GCCC is accessed via a web browser to confgure
the system and generate reports. This eliminates
the need for the IT department to set up data
management and processing servers and means
that the system can be up and running as soon as
the data collation unit is plugged in. The illustration
below summarises the way in which the galaxy
platform collects, analyses and reports data