More than just energy

Transcription

1 + EcoSteer installation example Energy intelligence leads to improved efficiency More than just energy Measuring the whole environment creates new opportunities

2 Installation details The first objective, detailed visibility of the efficiency of the building, has been achieved by installing a set of sensors, as follows: Electric energy main distribution point: a three phases energy meter has been installed so to have full visibility over the total consumption of electric energy. The data obtained by this device includes not only the active component of the energy but also the capacitive and inductive components. Thanks to this energy meter it is now possible to have a detailed view of the behaviour of a set of building systems, such as the air cooling system. It is also possible to identify any system decay as soon as it happens. Distribution of electric energy through the offices: within the building ten energy meters were installed, for sub-metering purposes. Each of these meters is used to see the total electric energy consumption of the offices within the incubator. These legacy energy meters have been integrated to the EcoSteer platform by using a pulse counter (the legacy meters provided only a pulse output interface). In this way it is possible to have immediate visibility over the way the total electric energy consumption is divided amongst several internal users. Departmental printer: an energy meter devoted to a departmental printer (shared by all the occupants) has been provided. The collected data produced by this energy meter is providing a very good insight about not only the printer itself (energy consumed during printing and during standby cycle) but also about human behaviour that might have quite a relevant impact on the overall energy consumption. Desktop sampling: within one of the offices an energy meter has been installed so to continuously monitor the energy usage of a single typical worker using network devices and computers. The collected data allows the documenting of a typical profile in order to identify possible improvements and to define a set of guidelines to facilitate pre-emptive maintenance. Innovation Fridge sampling: within the incubator there is a bar area where a fridge has been installed. An energy meter has been provided to monitor the energy usage of this fridge. The data collected from this sensor is particularly interesting when matched with other information such as the indoor temperature of the bar area. As well, this type of monitoring is quite important as it allows comparisons of the different energy usage profiles of several different devices belonging to the same category (ie which is the fridge that is performing better, given similar environmental conditions?). Outdoor environment: a sensor for temperature, humidity and luminosity has been installed on the roof of the incubator building. The data produced by this sensor is particularly important in order to understand the impact of the outdoor environment over the overall energy usage. It is quite interesting to note, for instance, that it is possible to document the impact of outdoor temperature and luminosity over the capacitive and inductive components of the electric energy. Bar indoor environment: within the bar area a sensor to measure the temperature, humidity and luminosity has been installed. The data collected from this sensor is quite important as it allows the verification of the relationship between the indoor environment and, for instance, the energy usage profile of the fridge within the same area. It is also possible, by matching the data from the roof sensor with the data of this indoor sensor, to document the overall efficiency of the bar area. Canteen indoor environment: a sensor for temperature and humidity has been installed within the canteen in the building. With this sensor it is possible to verify if there is any relationship between the indoor environment (temp/hum) and a people presence density that changes quite quickly during certain hours of the day. Indoor office environment: within one of the incubator offices a sensor for temperature and humidity has been installed. The data collected from this sensor allows observation of the impact of human behaviour and the relationships between the indoor and the outdoor environment and the energy used for the air treatment plant. Outdoor office environment: near the window of the same office a sensor for temperature, humidity and luminosity has been installed. In this way it is possible to immediately establish a relationship between indoor and outdoor environment and also it is possible to evaluate the overall thermal inertia of the office itself and the impact that a different sun exposition (eastwest-south-north) might have on the overall energy consumption, along different seasons.

3 + Which sensors have been used The selected sensors are from several different manufacturers and they expose quite different properties. The energy meters used for the main distribution point and the offices (electric energy) have a rs485 (modbus) interface. These meters have been connected to the EcoSteer platform via a RS485/Ethernet gateway. All the other sensors (both outdoor and indoor) have a wireless interface and they are powered by internal batteries. This kind of sensor has been selected in order to reduce the overall installation costs. Installation costs The installation of the energy meters on the main distribution point (total energy usage and offices subtotals) needed about six hours of a certified installer. The installation of all the remaining wireless sensors required about six hours time. The configuration of the EcoSteer platform, the configuration of the RS485/Ethernet gateway and of the wireless gateway and the initial certification test required in total about eight hours. Cost of sensors Sensors prices vary across manufacturers. The selected energy meter with three current transformers (200 Amp) has a tag price of about 450 euros. The pulse counter (used for the offices subtotals) has a tag price of about 500 euros. The average price of a wireless sensor is about 150 euros. Cost of software license and prerequisites As EcoSteer objective is to make energy efficiency monitoring pervasive, the software license cost for the EcoSteer platform is within the same order magnitude as the sensors it manages. The adopted RDBMS is Microsoft SQL Server. The selected web server is Apache (freeware). It is also necessary to have a license for Microsoft Windows 7. The installation has been provided on a virtual environment VMPlayer (freeware). Working in partnership EcoSteer works in partnership with facilities management companies, IT service providers, energy management consultants, hardware vendors, to deliver a complete solution to end users. EcoSteer partner New Consult, an IT Services Provider, carried out this installation. EcoSteer output data The EcoSteer platform aggregates, analyzes and presents to end users the data received from meters and sensors. Data is presented via a dashboard as information immediately usable by facilities managers, energy managers and energy auditors. The following pages show data diagram examples from the installation described above.

4 Time band analysis The diagram shows active energy hourly aggregation for the period 1 January 30 June. It provides a high level energy consumption profile, useful e.g. to immediately identify any excess usage during non-working hours Loads comparison The diagram compares the energy consumption profiles of different loads (e.g. server, printer, air conditioner, fridge, business units, etc). It provides information on their energy usage over time and allows prioritization of efficiency initiatives.

5 Energy quality analysis The diagram shows active energy and the inductive and capacitive components for the entire building. Capacitive and inductive energy data have been multiplied by a given factor to allow trend analysis and verify the impact of efficiency initiatives. Energy and environment The diagram shows total energy consumption for the building in relation to outdoor and indoor temperatures.

6 Energy consumption during printer standby The diagram shows clearly the impact of human behaviour on energy consumption. Thanks to EcoSteer, all employees in the building are aware that their printer in standby mode still consumes energy; they have learnt to switch it off after working hours (see data from midnight to 8 AM, on the left). Here, somebody used it after 6 PM and forgot to switch it off. The availability of low cost sensors and easy wireless connectivity allows pervasive monitoring of precious assets and critical resources right across the business. EcoSteer provides the right tools to harness this valuable data and create valuable information that can be transformed into actionable insights which improve business efficiency, productivity and the working environment. + EcoSteer Limited