2008 BACnet Standard approved by ASHRAE
BACnet committee takes leaps ahead to help reduce energy costs and improve integration for building controls systems world-wide.
A newly updated version of the BACnet standard now includes guidance to reduce a building's energy consumption on demand. The new standard is related to the Load Control object, which is an extension to reduce a building's energy consumption on demand. Points of interest include: The Access Door object, the first of the extensions to fully support physical access control; Improvements in requirements on BACnet devices; New capabilities such as BACnet Web Services which, are under consideration for energy utility-building communications;
A standardized and interoperable means to record alarms.
(1/26/2009)
TRASH, the new fuel stock for the future
Renewable energy takes a new and interesting form as distributed energy finds ways to generate power from the yesterdays trash.
The latest "thing" to hit the GREEN ENERGY push seems to be a return to simple science. The Gibbs Free Energy theory proposes, "The first law of thermodynamics states that the total energy of a system, including its surroundings, remains constant. It is implied that within the total system, energy is neither lost nor gained during any change. However, energy may be transferred from one part of the system to another or may be transformed into another form of energy. In living systems, it is possible for chemical energy to be transformed into heat or into electrical, radiant, or mechanical energy." Based on this ideal, companies are scrambling to find new ways to utilize clean and renewable-energy sources. Which means that waste may finally come full circle and become a valuable commodity yet again. IST Energy has launched their answer to Gibbs Free Energy theory with the Green Energy Machine (GEM), a machine the size of the semi-tractor truck flatbed that makes electricity and heat from plain old garbage.
(1/18/2009)
New construction slows while building automation gains
As the market slumps lower, so does funding for new construction projects, but funding for energy efficiency is gaining momentum.
Stellar, a Jacksonville engineering firm, experienced some cancellations for new construction in 2008, according to Chief Operating Officer Mike Santarone. His view shows companies aren't building brand-new buildings, but there continues to be a construction market for projects that add automation to plants so they can run more efficiently. It seems safe to say that our local construction market should experience similar positioning in the year to come, which is why it makes sense to fund those projects that can deliver a payback and increase a buildings worth.
(1/13/2009)
Do Green Buildings really cost more?
An in depth analysis of "Green Buildings" versus traditional build structures.
Talk all around the nation has been building about the importance of constructing in an environmentally sound way and how to do so with out wasting all of a company's "green"... Construction of a building requires literally thousands of small, yet important, decisions as opposed to deciding whether or not to purchase a one of a kind sculpture or fountain in order to make the building itself "stand out" from all the other urban clutter.
(1/1/2009)
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