Summer is already here for much of the country. The hotter weather presents one of the most critical challenges to your building management system (BMS). Components must work extra hard to maintain comfortable temperatures.
We all know the result of less-than-optimal building environments. Employees are uncomfortable and less productive. Heat, however, is much harder for most people to deal with. If the building is too chilly, they can wear a sweater or other warmer clothes, but workers have fewer options when it is too warm. Clients and customers are also affected and less likely to want to visit your office, campus, or facility.
However, there are measures to ensure you get the most out of your HVAC and BMS building. Take a look at these easy tips.
1. Inspect and Replace HVAC Filters
You’ve just been through spring, peak season for airborne pollen and the allergies accompanying those yellow microspores (another factor affecting worker productivity). Your HVAC filters are likely overloaded. A clogged filter means less than optimal airflow, which is key to proper ventilation. Spring and summer also mean lots of construction, which only adds to airborne particles. Inspect all filters (including HEPAs) and change any mildly suspect ones.
HOT TIP: When changing a filter, inscribe your initials on the filter and the date you installed it. This makes it easier to track for you and other members of your team.
2. Evaluate Your Building’s Outside Environment
Are you located near agriculture? Do farmers rotate crops? Some crops generate more pollen than others, so you or other employees might feel as if this summer is worse than last year for pollen. That puts a heavier load on filters. Also, evaluate nearby construction, especially if buildings are going up adjacent to your location. Construction generates dust, placing a load on your HVAC filters, and construction debris could interfere with sensors and ventilation shafts.
3. Verify All Software Updates
Your approach to software updates should be that of nuclear treaty negotiators: “Trust, but verify.” In this environment of cloud computing, most software updates are automatic. Mistakes happen, though. Things get overlooked, and not all updates are completed. Make sure that your BMS system has all updates and patches installed. If not, make sure they happen. Most of these can be manually updated so that you can verify that your system is current.
4. Get Eyes on Potential Problems
Trust your BMS to show you problem areas, but also do those critical visual checks. Examine as much of the system as possible–fans, chillers, thermostats. Ensure that everything is working well. Look for everything, from a bird’s nest in a ventilation shaft to a tenant employee or service worker who might have inadvertently blocked a vent with furniture or even a copy machine.
5. Add Occupancy Sensors to your BMS
If you don’t already have these devices, consider adding them. Most employees go on vacation during the summer, and offices are at less than maximum occupancy. Cooling those empty spaces is a waste of energy dollars and an undue strain on your HVAC and BMS systems at a time when they are working the hardest. If you already have occupancy sensors, check that they are working.
6. Calibrate All Sensors
Over time, the tolerances programmed into sensors will drift. This is especially true if the weather has been extremely hot. Your BMS is only as good as the data it gets. Inaccurate readings mean less than optimal performance.
7. Check with Municipal, County, and State Energy Agencies, and the Utilities
Summer is also the construction and maintenance season for the electrical grid. Contact the appropriate government and utility officials to inquire about changes to the grid or the potential for blackouts and brownouts during the summer. Also, ask if there are any new rebate programs you can take advantage of.
8. Assess Your BMS at the End of the Summer
Remember, summer is the toughest season on HVAC and BMS. Increased temperatures cause extra wear and tear on components operating under a high load. Weaknesses in your system, including refrigeration leaks, will quickly become apparent. Your post-summer inspection should be just as diligent as the one you did before the season started.
9. Check in with Your BMS Partner
As we enter this peak-demand season on BMS, checking in with your BMS partner is also a good idea. There might be updates to systems and components that, for a nominal investment, can substantially improve performance.
FICO has served Montana and the Pacific Northwest for over twenty years, providing the most current BMS and HVAC products and knowledge. Our personnel are certified in the products and systems we offer. Our industry partnerships and certifications include the most prestigious companies in the industry.
Whether you are in the planning stages of your building or have recently purchased a building and you are looking to retrofit it with updated HVAC and BMS controls, FICO is your ideal partner.
