Basics of building automation

Christian Wild, Managing Director of ICONAG Leittechnik in Idar-Oberstein, has earned an excellent reputation as an expert in building automation. In order to pass this knowledge on to the next generation, he has now received another teaching assignment from the Department of Civil and University of Applied Sciences Environmental Engineering at Mainz University of Applied Sciences.

His lecture series as a lecturer in construction and the environment deals with the fundamentals of building automation. One of the aims of the lecture is to bring the students, who come from different specialist areas, up to the same level. Christian Wild starts his lecture series with a definition of the term building automation:

“Building automation (BA) refers to all measures, facilities, processes, software and services for automatic control and regulation, monitoring, optimization and operation as well as for the management for the operation of the building services in line with the objectives. Building automation is therefore the central tool for the energy-efficient and safe operation of the buildings themselves.”

Building automation ensures that non-residential buildings in particular operate as intended without human intervention and - depending on the building's objectives - in an energy-efficient, reliable/safe, economical, comfortable and barrier-free manner.

The course deals with the existing regulations that enable modularized planning and implementation of building automation and with the functions of building automation, which are defined for the technical building systems, rooms and building automation management depending on the use of the building.

With his series of lectures, Wild makes it clear that building automation is the central tool for the energy-efficient and safe operation of non-residential buildings: “The energy transition by 2045 cannot be achieved without building automation in existing buildings,” he says.

He explains to the students why the energy-efficient operation of non-residential buildings with BA is nevertheless a major challenge. “The systems were generally not commissioned properly and are also not managed professionally.” In order to achieve greater quality in the building automation trade, the standardization of BA functions according to the specifications of AMEV's BACtwin is a good way to plan, implement and operate BA systems. The use of BACtwin would also open up a wide range of possibilities for the digitalization of technical building management.

With the European Performance of Buidling Directive (EPBD) and the Building Energy Act (GEG), the legislator stipulates, among other things, the installation of BA systems and continuous energy-optimizing operational management of larger non-residential buildings.

“Building automation is therefore a key technology for the energy transition and the sustainable operation of buildings,” concludes Wild. “Standardization such as BACtwin, digitalization and legal requirements will further increase the importance of BA.”