Trends in building automation

The goals of building automation include optimizing processes in building operation, improving energy efficiency and the sustainability of the real estate portfolio. The energy management potential according to EN 15232, for example, is 49 percent for shopping centers, 39 percent for office buildings, 39 percent for schools/universities, 25 percent for hotels and 18 percent for clinics. In addition, adapting the building to new usage scenarios such as flexible and virtual teamwork plays a major role in office properties. There is a need to digitize, because building automation must not remain an island. To achieve the goals, the data from it is also interesting and important for other bodies and systems.  For example, for cost development and billing, occupancy of rooms, control of the cleaning service provider and many more.

The most important trends in building automation are meeting the ever-increasing requirements for energy efficiency and IT security, as well as the ever more extensive collection, storage and evaluation of process data from the building. Operators of real estate portfolios in particular face the problem of standardizing the data structures of their proprietary systems and making them interpretable. On the one hand, this is fundamentally important for the effective use of computer aided facility management systems. On the other hand, it is essential for the development of artificial intelligence in technical building and energy management. Building owners, planners and operators of real estate are therefore facing important challenges. ICONAG provides clear recommendations on how real estate can be made "digitalization-ready" in order to simplify building management processes and manage them in a more energy- and resource-efficient way.

The foundations for data-driven building automation are just being laid

The master plan for digitalization in the field of technical building automation consists of five stages: 1. fundamentals (openness, IT networking, org), 2. understanding data (business intelligence), 3. real-time recommendations, 4. automatic interventions, 5. artificial intelligence (AI/ML).

First, however, the conditions must be created to understand the data from the building and to be able to derive a real-time recommendation from it. Then there is the possibility of automated intervention. Only in the last stage are the conditions fulfilled to replace humans with machines and to bring artificial intelligence to bear.

The openness in stage 1 makes it possible for different devices from different manufacturers to become compatible. This requires open communication protocols and openly accessible databases. For vendor-neutral communication for building automation in the real estate portfolio, BACnet has been introduced as a standard; alternatively, OPC/UA is also used, which is increasingly used in industrial automation. With these standards, the systems in the building as well as several buildings can be networked with each other. All sensors are recorded, evaluated and there is access to all data. At this point, IT security becomes more and more important as a non-functional requirement. An unencrypted data transmission has the consequence that an access from the outside is possible. Encrypted communication must be guaranteed. The BACnet, OPC/UA and KNX protocols all now offer corresponding security mechanisms, at least for new installations.

Interpretability of data and interfaces

An important point with regard to the future security of technical building management is the interpretability of data. Digitization of processes and improvement of energy efficiency in accordance with ISO 50001 are out of the question if the data lie in a proprietary data graveyard and/or are not interpretable. Important potentials for cost and resource efficiency are wasted. Therefore, a uniform labeling system is needed, including the naming of data points for each technical function. The data must be understood in order to be interpreted. Therefore, the data points must already be named accordingly in the automation stations. With ICONAG's B-CON software, existing plants can also be effectively accessed, since incorrectly named data points can be enriched with a uniform labeling system.

Only with this system can, for example, excess consumption in energy management be reliably detected across all properties. The system also shows the location of the consumption online, enables an analysis and direct intervention to prevent additional consumption in the future. The benefits are obvious from the example of a school: If the heating in a school runs in normal mode during the winter vacations because it was set to manual, such errors can be detected and corrected directly. This prevents energy waste and reduces CO2 emissions.

All operating data in the system should be made available via open and documented interfaces (API = Application Programming Interface) for coupling with third-party systems. Only then can ERP systems for cost allocation, maintenance service providers, help desks or other systems easily dock onto the technology in building management. More and more "IoT devices" (Internet of Things) are also entering the building: waste management, indoor navigation, workplace occupancy, parking space reservation, energy measurement, charging station management or IT monitoring. IoT and the ability to use this information must be provided by the building automation of the future. This can be seen in simple applications: IoT devices such as trash cans save staff and trash bags by checking the fill level. The same applies to sensors in toilets that report when soap or paper needs to be refilled. Indoor navigation, controlled via Bluetooth beacons, is also part of the Smart Office. It guides employees to free workstations. Sensors report the occupancy of rooms and workstations, detect defective equipment and much more. All information can be accessed and evaluated via simple API. Ultimately, this not only saves space and energy, but also optimizes the deployment of personnel.

Hurdles for GA in the planning, construction and operation of buildings

Especially for buildings, which have a long life cycle, the implementation of a complete building automation is a complex matter. The foundations for automation are laid during new construction or renovation/restructuring. It usually takes 20 to 30 years before the technology is adapted or modernized. The biggest trouble spots during the operational phase are that a large proportion of buildings equipped with GA are poorly managed, with energy and resource efficiency thus falling by the wayside and profitability lagging behind potential. As a result, property value suffers. During the construction phase, it is very often not checked whether the building/building automation (BA) is functioning as specified, because commissioning management including technical monitoring is still in its infancy. During the planning phase, it becomes apparent that there are only a few TGA planners who can plan, tender and implement vendor-neutral GA systems. As a result, new proprietary solutions are still emerging as data silos, with the consequence that building management is only very slowly becoming "digitalization-ready".