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Where is energy wasted and how can we save energy?

HVAC systems may not be configured as a closed loop system to set temperature based on external factors. In addition, the set points are pre-defined and not based on temperature sensing or occupancy sensing. HVAC Leakages are common and most IBMS are not designed to capture leakage scenarios. Constant analysis of energy leakage scenarios will save significant energy, up to 20%. A well-controlled HVAC can reduce energy bills by up to 20% without losing any comfort.

Energy on lighting and can be controlled based on occupancy, with zone-based lighting control.

Unmanaged power factor leads to power losses and additional penalties. The savings can be anywhere from 1% to 30%. Energy Usage beyond office hours due to manual process of turn-off is a significant wastage. This can be controlled through simple monitoring and scheduled turn-off.

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In tenanted properties, there is a significant gap between landlord billing and actual usage - Power, DG and HVAC. Energy Information System provides a simple way of calculating mismatch losses and in corrections. This could be as high as 20%. Diesel pilferage by showing excess usage of diesel while not actually being consumed is common. Monitoring diesel-generated power is an easy way of correcting this, saving 5% to 10%.

Equipment such as rotary machines, chillers, pumps, motors etc. deteriorate over time and hence guzzle more energy if the performance condition is not peak. These developing faults are thus early indicators of performance issues, energy imbalances and systemic failures. These are the root causes of underperformance, which if addressed provides significant energy saving.

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How can we analyse energy and energy wastage?

To save energy, we must measure & report energy usage, analyse energy wastage and then optimize for energy savings. First, automatically collect real-time energy meter readings (AMR), UPS readings and BMS data and indicate normal and abnormal operations. Then we must report real-time energy data, energy tracking, trending and forecasting with automated alarming on breach of target, thresholds or events.

Then we must analyse real-time and historical data to reveal energy usage trends and patterns, demand peaks, spare capacity for additional load, and relationships between equipment and the conditions affecting system stability.

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We must measure and compare power consumption across buildings, department, zones, shifts and processes and allocate costs. Calculate the cost for energy usage based on tiered rates, & Power Factor penalties.

We must support algorithms for analysis of energy consumption, savings and wastage and optimization metrics to identify and prioritize best practices for energy savings. Validate utility bills and billing errors against totalized consumption.

How does Digital Blanket® enable Energy Savings and Energy Analytics?

Digital Blanket® provides adapters for retrofitting into existing environment including Grid, UPS, Diesel Generator, Gas, Lighting, HVAC, Solar etc. with control of HVAC & lighting based on zones, schedules and occupancy.

Digital Blanket® regulates energy usage through control of HVAC and Lighting. Real-time monitoring, alarming, and power quality analysis to avoid critical conditions that can cause equipment failures and downtime. Identify locations of poor power factor and justify power factor improvement measures.

Digital Blanket® enables setting of targets, tracking energy wastage due to poor scheduling and improper set points. It correlates building occupancy data with power consumption for building operations to help understand energy wastage. Reveal historical and current load patterns and hidden capacity in correlation with occupancy.

Digital Blanket® also helps transition data to insights with pre-configured KPI's, descriptive and predictive dashboards (comparisons - historical to current, between buildings, floors.) with flexibility to personalize the visualization layer.

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Digital Blanket® employs advanced Fault Detection and Diagnostics for HVAC and these enable direct energy reduction due to early fault detection and suitable addressal of these faults.

With condition monitoring, we simulate multiple operating scenarios of any rotary equipment like chillers, pumps, colling towers etc. Then we can link such simulated performance curves to the current performance to identify possible conditional variances and, hence developing faults.

Condition Monitoring can be combined as a unified process for continuous improvement in tune with the best practices for Energy Management (ISO 50001), Asset Management (ISO 55001), ESM, and Performance Measurement & Verification (IPMVP), providing measurable and verifiable outcomes.

Integration with energy control enforces energy conservation and sustainability and helps you to comply with your energy-efficiency and emission-reduction obligations.