Groupama
Illuminating the path to energy savings.
KNX intelligent building control technology can deliver tremendous reductions in energy bills for all kinds of businesses
Cutting costs and squeezing margins -- these tend to be the watchwords in any period of economic turbulence. The surfeit of gloomy headlines and statistic-laden reports over recent months suggests that the current financial outlook is more uncertain than at any time in the last decade-and-a-half, and so it follows that businesses of all sizes and shapes are working hard to identify those all-important savings.
As an increasing number of companies are finding out, the implementation of energy-efficient technology can contribute significantly to a streamlined cost-base. In particular, intelligent building controls that allow primary systems such as lighting and heating to respond to users' behaviour and requirements can facilitate very substantial savings -- even in the short-term.
KNX is one such technology. With at least one recent study indicating that this technology can reduce a building's energy consumption by up to 50%, it's no surprise to discover that KNX implementation is an increasingly hot topic amongst building services managers and consultants.
EnTech Ltd is a leading proponent of KNX, and a recent project on behalf of multi-national insurance giant Groupama illustrates many of the technology's primary benefits. Covering four floors at the company's Croydon facility, the project -- integrated by Entech -- centred on the installation of a KNX-based DALI lighting control system, used in conjunction with a Siemens GE141 DALI IP gateway and HTS constant daylight sensors. This set up will enable the lights to be turned on or off depending on whether or not the area is occupied, and, if it is occupied, for the light leve to be monitored and maintained at a constant 500 lux at the desk level.
Our senior KNX engineer, Noel Ward, project manager throughout the Groupama installation, says that the building was always going to be a strong candidate for energy savings thanks to the high levels of natural daylight on all floors. Moreover, "whereas in a lot of cases constant daylight control is only fitted by the windows, we installed it throughout the office area for this project, enabling us to have different light levels in different areas. This was particularly useful for one employee who suffers from migraines and was keen to have a reduced light level in her working area".
Entech also specified ComBridge Studio, a software package from building automation products and software solutions developer IPAS based on EIB/KNX that enables remote fault detection, maintenance and modification. This flexibility is set to carry on proving its worth long into the future given that any possible expansion or repurposing of the Croydon offices would require only the most straightforward of modifications to the KNX-based lighting specification. The KNX system could easily be brought onto additional floors or areas. It is simply a case of reprogramming and reassigning different lighting groups.
Of course, the real test of this impressive new configuration in the shorter term is its potential to deliver significant reductions in energy expenditure. While it is only a matter of months since the installation was completed, Entech is confident that energy savings will comfortably outstrip its original estimate for the project of 45%. Meanwhile, in the longer-term, the fact that light fittings are being run at less than full power will also ensure a significantly greater average lamp life.
With an increasing number of businesses in the UK and mainland Europe actively exploring the potential of KNX implementation, it is clear that this particular star is now firmly in the ascendant. Couple the growing pressure on commercial enterprises to reduce their carbon footprints with a less-than-cheerful prognosis for the global economy and you can be sure that KNX will assume an even higher profile during the next few years.