Integration of older building automation systems with B-CON

The constantly growing field of building automation and the associated management and operating functions has experienced fundamental innovative innovations and expansions in recent years. In addition to the improvement of technical possibilities in monitoring, measurement and evaluation, a fundamental upheaval in technical building management has also taken place: Away from manufacturer-dependent systems and towards manufacturer-independent and cross-trade solutions.

These not only allow simpler and better monitoring and control, but also save cash and thus enable more efficient operation of the building, especially in the case of extensions or repairs. While nowadays more and more new buildings are planned, built and operated independently of manufacturers right from the start, there are still numerous buildings with technically outdated building automation systems that are in need of renovation and are dependent on manufacturers. According to the motto "never change a running system", however, people are often reluctant to make the effort to free themselves from the previous manufacturer dependency and to gain sovereignty over their own data.

The building management software B-CON enables a simple and fast integration into already existing (outdated) building automation systems. It takes over and processes existing data and histories and allows open access to all data and functions.

Due to its open interface concept, B-CON can integrate into the systems of almost all manufacturers and convert the manufacturer-specific protocols (e.g. from Honeywell, Sauter, Siemens, Kieback & Peter etc.) into BACnet objects. Thus, all data and functions of the room and system automation can be reliably read, monitored and mapped. After successful integration, B-CON combines all trades and building automation systems of different manufacturers in a single, manufacturer-neutral management and operating device.

This is particularly interesting for properties that have been gradually renovated over the past decades (e.g. clinics, administration buildings, schools, production halls, etc.) and where, due to tenders and technical developments, there is an inhomogeneous system from different manufacturers. Here, too, B-CON can not only integrate all existing systems, but also map and manage newly added systems of plant and room automation (e.g. for heating or cooling, ventilation, lighting or shading) in the event of further expansion/refurbishment of the property. With B-CON, data from a wide variety of systems is loaded equally into an object list and visualized for display and operation. From this moment on, it is irrelevant for the operators of the management and operating equipment or the energy management system from which, partly proprietary systems, these data points originate. Inconsistencies in the designation, e.g. due to MSR companies and system integrators not working strictly according to specifications, can be detected directly via the object list and corrected immediately. B-CON supports a semi-automatic generation of plant images in the display and operating functions. The prerequisite for this is a consistent labeling system.

In B-CON, a continuous labeling system not only provides a quick and comprehensive overview of the current status of all objects, but also allows the management function to be set up quickly. For example, all alarm messages can be selected quickly and transferred to the alarm and event management system with a single mouse click.