One of the world’s foremost financial groups is setting the pace in energy management by creating an ‘intelligent’ building that’s efficient to run and sensitive to environmental impact.
The company has adopted an holistic approach to energy measurement– whether it be electricity,gas,heat or water -by embracing the latest developments in metering and monitoring technology at one of its major centres in London.
Sensus Metering Systems,who supplied and commissioned the technology,says that the system is in keeping with incoming requirements of the EU Energy Performance of Buildings Directive,which is set to increase significantly the onus on building owners to scrutinise energy performance and to certify efficiency.
The Directive,which comes into effect in January 2006,requires the adoption of a rigorous methodology that provides clear and comparable information on the exact use of all the energy used within a building.
At the heart of this methodology is accurate metering.In the case of this financial services company,this meant the installation of metering technology that enables energy usage to be measured with considerable accuracy floor by floor and area by area … and all remotely by using ultrasonic energy meters and automated reading devices,with the potential to interface to web-based data transfer and interrogation technology.
“Traditionally,energy consumption has been apportioned on a floor-by-floor or square metre basis - but the system installed in this building creates a much more detailed picture of consumption by application,”comments Jamie Longman,Business Development/Project Manager,Systems and Services,at Sensus Metering Systems.
“Building regulations require energy consumption to be submetered in multi-occupancy premises,but the incoming Directive extends the concept of measurement still further into the areas of energy performance and efficiency.The latest metering technology makes it possible to monitor energy wherever it flows within a building, providing a much more accurate picture of consumption,efficiency and cost.”
The Directive is highlighting the need to use metering technology as a front-line management tool to identify patterns of energy usage,so that poor practice can be challenged and waste minimised.
In the London project,the strategy was to install an intelligent metering system that could identify energy usage within individual work areas and measure energy consumption in more detail.
Sensus located 31 ultrasonic energy meters, designed to measure heating and air conditioning applications,throughout the building– and linked these,together with bulk water meters and electricity meters,to an M-Bus reading system that transmits data to automated reading software.
This enables readings to be collected across the network on a regular basis,providing the building’s facilities management,and the owners of the premises,with highly accurate information for billing purposes … and key data for the development of energy comparisons and environmental strategies.The detection and reading of all meters on the system is automatic –all driven remotely in a web-based environment from a standard pc running Dokom software.
