Building management systems have their roots in HVAC. In the late 1800s, as the industrial age started pushing more people into smaller work areas, industrialists began to see the first cases of sick building syndrome—employees becoming ill from breathing stale air and exposure to infectious diseases. Those employees who didn’t get sick were often still less productive.
A conglomeration of architects and physicians linked the problem to a lack of fresh air, and their search for a solution led to developing early building management systems. These first hardwired operations did little more than open and close vents to allow air exchange, but they made a difference.
With the development of computers almost a hundred years later, building management systems became increasingly efficient and made more of a difference. With the arrival of each successive technology—remote operation, wireless connectivity, cloud computing, the internet of things, and artificial intelligence—BMS became even more fine-tuned. Facilities engineers can increase or decrease the number of air exchanges in a room from the central controls of the BMS, and often, the action is automatic, guided by AI. BMS can detect plumbing leaks and can detect faulty components more quickly.
Technology also allowed BMS developers to incorporate more systems within a building—electricity management, plumbing, security, and access control. But perhaps one of the most significant (and all these building systems are significant) was that of lighting control systems.
What’s inside this blog post:
- What is lighting control?
- The benefits of lighting control systems.
- How lighting control systems and BMS work together.
- Will BMS and lighting control systems converge?
- FICO is on the cutting edge of lighting control.
What is lighting control?
Two significant developments have paved the way for lighting control systems in the past few decades. The first is light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The second and most recent is luminaire-level lighting controls (LLLCs).
LEDs
To appreciate LED lighting, you must first look at the incandescent light bulb. Incandescent lighting uses electricity to heat a strand of filament until it is white hot. This provides light and heat. Incandescents are also inefficient. About 5% of the electricity goes to creating light. The other 95% produces heat, which is generally of little use and also contributes to the filament burning out and the relatively short lifespan of a light bulb.
An LED produces light by passing an electrical current through a microchip, illuminating small light sources called light-emitting diodes (LED) and creating light. The LED technology also incorporates a heat sink, which absorbs the heat and channels it away. The advantage is that LED lighting sources can be more efficiently controlled. The process is also about 90% more efficient than incandescent lighting regarding the light vs. heat imbalance. LED technology has been around since the early ‘60s for specialty uses, but it has improved. It is now mainstream in many lighting applications.
LLLCs
Luminaire-level lighting controls (LLLCs) combine LEDs with embedded controls (meaning each light source can have a sensor control). These sensors are programmed to adjust the light according to occupancy and the availability of daylight. Rather than rely on commands from a central system, individual units make lighting decisions, often without human interaction.
A central system can also override the embedded sensor if necessary. These systems often use Bluetooth, so they operate wirelessly.
Together, LEDs and LLLCs make up the modern lighting control system. There are also other components. Depending on how the sun hits a building, interior blinds will automatically open during the day, letting more natural daylight into the building. Specialized window films filter the daylight for optimal results.
The benefits of lighting control systems
Like many things related to building operations, lighting control systems offer two significant benefits: energy savings and employee well-being.
Energy savings strategies
The US Energy Administration performed a commercial buildings energy consumption survey and concluded that lighting accounts for 15% to 20% of a building’s energy usage. LEDs are more energy efficient. Additionally, lighting control systems give facilities managers more control over a building’s lighting, imperceptibly dimming the lights and taking advantage of available sunlight. At least one study in CSE Magazine indicated that smart lighting systems can save as much as 29% in energy.
LEDs also produce far less heat, which lightens the load on the HVAC. Lighting control systems are a big part of sustainable building practices.
Employee well-being
According to CSE Magazine, natural daylight causes the brain to produce serotonin, a chemical that, among other things, promotes a better mood and reduces stress. Another study by Cornell University noted that daylight reduces eyestrain and headaches by 84% and reduces drowsiness by 10%. Tenants in a building with lighting control systems have less absenteeism in the workforce, greater occupant comfort, and better employee productivity.
How lighting control systems and BMS work together
For the most part, lighting control systems and building management systems are developed separately. Much of this is due to building management systems being around much longer than lighting control systems. With the addition of luminaire-level lighting controls, these technologies have now dovetailed.
Internet of Things (IoT)
IoT technology links separate systems together, often to act in unison to data and conditions. If the BMS senses an overload in the public grid or inclement weather threatens to compromise power, the building could switch to alternative energy sources. For example, BMS could tap into a rooftop solar system for energy on a hot day, thus reducing the building’s dependence on the outside grid.
A BMS might also have sensors in the bathrooms of a building or campus to detect when those facilities are low on soap and paper towels—building maintenance receives an alert that refills are needed.
These are all parts of the Internet of Things.
Like BMS, lighting control systems use IoT technology to determine a building’s lighting needs. LLLCs sense when a university conference room fills up for a lecture, and lighting is adjusted accordingly. A hospital’s LLLC system may detect a decrease in patient count and adjust the lighting needs, darkening unused rooms.
Cloud computing
Both BMS and lighting control systems generate a tremendous amount of data. Facilities managers use this data to monitor performance, recreate scenarios, foresee maintenance, and perform predictive analytics. Lighting control systems produce data to accomplish similar tasks. Cloud computing provides interactive capabilities so that this data can be stored and accessed.
Mobile technology
Mobile and wireless technology, which designers and installers of BMS systems have adapted, is also essential in lighting control systems. Building tenants come and go and need change. Wireless LLLCs mean light can be repositioned and configured without concern for the wiring infrastructure of the buildings’ walls, ceiling, and floor.
Mobile technology also makes it easier for facility managers to manage dispersed properties and multiple structures such as hospitals and universities. The BMS professionals can make changes and adjustments from a central location, even if the system is in another building.
Will BMS and lighting control systems converge?
As these technologies become more ingrained within BMS and lighting control systems, we will see more blending of the two systems. One element that figures into this is the ability of BMS systems to communicate with lighting control systems. The commercial lighting industry uses DALI, a digital addressable lighting interface, a system of products and software that allows lighting components to communicate.
Another of the principal technologies of BMS is open and integrated platforms, which would provide for communication with a DALI-based lighting system.
FICO is on the cutting edge of lighting control
“FICO has worked on projects in which we have incorporated lighting control systems into BMS,” says Mitch Andrus, senior account executive for FICO. “It’s more common in higher-end projects such as hospitals and universities. It can also be important in projects where LEED certification is a goal. With the increased use of these technologies, the capabilities are better than ever, and prices will ultimately become more affordable.”
The experts and technicians at FICO, based in Great Falls, Montana, have designed and installed building management systems for more than two decades. The firm’s portfolio of projects includes office buildings, hospitals, schools, colleges, and universities. FICO partners with the most recognizable names in the industry, including Schneider Electric, Salient Systems, and other well-known suppliers and innovators of building management systems.
To learn more about the energy savings capabilities of building management systems, contact FICO or visit our website today.
