Top 5 Energy-Efficient HVAC Control Solutions for Building Automation
You come in from the summer heat and feel the cold air wash over you. Ah, the comforts of modern air conditioning. However, Heating, Ventilation, and Air Conditioning (HVAC) systems demand a large portion of a building’s energy consumption — up to 44 percent!
Because HVAC consumes so much electricity, it’s important to implement energy-saving solutions to reduce costs and environmental impact. Here are five effective energy-efficient HVAC controls to make your building automation and power management as streamlined and economical as possible. Contact our sales team to find out how Functional Devices can help you upgrade your controls and save you money.
1. Smart Thermostats
Part of the wave of AI integration into building automation, a smart thermostat connects to a building’s Wi-Fi and automatically controls and optimizes heating and cooling. The advanced technology includes built-in sensors, algorithmic adjustments, and machine learning.
You begin by setting and tweaking the thermostat’s preferences to teach it your building’s patterns and needs. Over time, the smart thermostat learns to adjust the settings automatically, playing a pivotal role in your building automation system (BAS). For example, the thermostat might increase the temperature of the building at night during the summer when it’s vacant.
The advantages of using a smart thermostat in a BAS include increased occupant comfort, enhanced safety features, reduced operating costs, and more energy savings.
2. Variable Air Volume Systems
The different zones in your commercial building don’t need the same amount of airflow from the HVAC system all day. A variable air volume (VAV) system differs from a constant air volume (CAV) system in that it adjusts the amount of air depending on the heating and cooling needs of a building’s zones rather than supplying constant airflow.
The technology powering this energy-efficient solution includes VAV boxes adjusted by a damper. The air handling unit delivers the air, the VAV box’s damper controls the volume, and the thermostat controls the damper positions to reach the set temperature.
Most obviously, a VAV’s fine-tuned airstream improves an HVAC system’s energy efficiency. Other benefits include improved air quality, optimized comfort, reduced compressor wear and tear, less fan noise, and better humidity control.
3. Energy and Heat Recovery Ventilation Systems
Buildings need to breathe: fresh outside air in, stale indoor air out. A ventilation system could be as simple as a vent in the wall, but energy recovery ventilation (ERV) and heat recovery ventilation (HRV) systems provide a more ideal solution for industrial applications.
Both types accomplish the same basic task. The difference is that an ERV can impact humidity levels while an HRV can’t. Both kinds of mechanical ventilation systems use fans, filters, and pipes to exchange inside and outside air.
ERVs and HRVs improve energy efficiency by exchanging the temperature of the air instead of using more energy to cool or heat the internal and external air separately.
Besides boasting similar benefits to the other options in this list, ERV and HRV systems reduce pollutants, help those with allergies and asthma, and make a building quieter and draft free.
4. Demand-Controlled Ventilation
Demand-controlled ventilation (DCV) is a good complement to your ERV/HRV and VAV systems. Just like a VAV changes the volume of air inside the building, a DCV automatically adjusts the amount of air coming in from the outside.
As the name implies, a created demand for increased or decreased airflow powers this type of ventilation. Sensors measure carbon dioxide levels, humidity, and temperature to determine system adjustments. For example, the DCV will increase airflow in response to increased levels of carbon dioxide in a crowded room.
A DCV reduces wasted energy in underused spaces, helps maintain indoor air quality, limits moisture issues, and, of course, improves occupant comfort and energy efficiency.
5. IoT-Enabled Sensors and Actuators
Internet of Things (IoT) devices are transforming BAS into smart, adaptive, energy-efficient solutions for commercial buildings. IoT-enabled sensors and actuators are hardwired electrical components that, in this case, automate and optimize an HVAC system’s performance through real-time data.
Sensors measure environmental variables like temperature, humidity, air quality, pressure, and thermal profile. Actuators take the data from sensors and turn it into actions. In an HVAC system, they open and close dampers to regulate the airflow that controls temperature and humidity.
In addition to improving energy efficiency and climate control, IoT-enabled sensors and actuators enable scalability, improve diagnostics, and allow remote monitoring.
Energy-Efficient HVAC Controls: Key for Power Management in Building Automation
Remember, your HVAC system can account for almost half of your building’s energy needs; therefore, utilizing energy-efficient HVAC controls is essential for both the planet and your bottom line.
Combine some or all of these solutions, tailored to your building’s requirements, to improve power management and streamline building automation. With your HVAC system optimized by smart thermostats, variable volume air systems, energy recovery ventilation or heat recovery ventilation, demand-controlled ventilation, and Internet-of-Things-enabled sensors and actuators, you’ll enjoy lower utility costs, better air quality, improved occupant comfort, and more!
At Functional Devices, Inc., we love optimizing BAS with energy savings in mind. Our high-quality building automation products redefine commercial building efficiency, promote sustainability, and future-proof your systems. Contact our support team to learn more about HVAC control solutions and find a distributor near you.
About Functional Devices, Inc.
Functional Devices, Inc., located in the United States of America, has been designing and manufacturing quality electronic devices since 1969. Our mission is to enhance lives in buildings and beyond. We do so by designing and manufacturing reliable, high-quality products for the building automation industry. Our suite of product offerings include RIB relays, current sensors, power controls, power supplies, transformers, lighting controls, and more.
We test 100% of our products, which leads to less than 1 out of every 16,000 products experiencing a failure in the field.
Simply put, we provide users of our various products confidence and peace of mind in every box.