Frustration!
The greatest industry challenge we regularly witness is the frustrated client who wants to use another vendor and feels trapped with the vendor they have now, “Vendor captivity” in BMS, Automation, HVAC and Access Control can cost landlords and property manager more money than it should. Our goal is to “unwrap” the client and offer them freedom of choice, at a low cost.
How Can We Help?
The initial strategy is a simple process, one visit, at no cost will establish if we can assist.
- Establish if full or part access is available via the current passwords
- Are full programmable access passwords available?
- Is the communications protocol of the BMS a genuine open protocol or is it “proprietary open” or closed?
- What is the age of the BMS?
- What brand is the BMS?
- Is there a “JACE” involved?
We are Licensed Electricians
Being an electrical contractor means we can legally and safely open a switchboard and work on it in line with the faults of your control system.
Vendor
We can install additional panels, connect them to the building without delays to modify the switchboard to incorporate the controllers directly.
If there is an issue with a 240-volt relay or some other issue that comes under the electrician’s domain, we can fix and/or repair it while we are there. There is no waiting for another contractor and there are fewer engineering issues.
Hardware Replacement
Replacement of the BMS hardware can depend upon the vintage, the brand of the system, and the communications protocol (assuming we have full password access). Often our buying power will obtain a good price for your controller, even when it is proprietary, this because our supplier knows we are not involved in construction and don’t compete in the construction industry. Purely facility services. Our suppliers understand they are being looked after and, like us, are interested in the long term client relationship.
Hybrid System
To reduce costs we can often create a hybrid system that works, we will explain the limitations, if any, to you and any performance issues which might arise. This strategy is not a favorite, but in older BMS systems it can solve a problem, without a full upgrade.
Pneumatic Systems
Pneumatic control systems can be interfaced into digital systems for minimal cost
There are still parts available and there are “electric to pneumatic” transducers (E-to-P) which can save you money and still offer the benefits of having both systems.
The benefit offers our client a staged approach to upgrading the entire system. Instead of one huge capital expense, we can upgrade the controls to digital while keeping some of the more expensive field actuators pneumatic with a view to upgrading these at a later date.
Field Equipment
Sensors, actuators, transducers, switches, relays, valves, and other peripheral field equipment is usually purchased via a third party, even by the major companies in the industry, just re-branded. Typically field devices are 24 volts A/C, 0-10 volt signals, or 4-20milliamp signals. Suppliers for this equipment are all over Australia and generally have most requirements for commercial applications in stick or just a few days away.
High-Level Interface – HLI
The High-level Interface between original equipment manufacturers (O.E.M) generally works the 
same way. Many are BACnet and Modbus communication protocols, with Lon Works slowly falling away as the other protocols take the market. HLI is a very useful method as it “integers” are transferred between devices with the need for any calculations, the calculation is done inside the O.E.M equipment. Chillers and energy meters are the most commonly used HLI in the BMS system.
Call Today
Try us today, let’s see if we can reduce your costs and return your “Freedom of Choice”!
