SMART Building Automation System Project Saves Energy, Lowers Utility Costs

About the Program

Category: County Resiliency (Best in Category)

Year: 2015

A real-time automatic sensing and reporting building support system allows County of San Diego staff to control irregularities at government facilities remotely to reduce and eliminate high utility costs. An initial implementation of the system at one facility has saved the County nearly $54,000 in its first year and full County implementation is projected to save $1.4 million a year in energy savings. The County Department of General Services (DGS) initiated the Smart Building Automation System Project to address inefficiencies in building support system operations at significant facilities which were negatively affecting utility costs. The Department of General Services has operational responsibility for more than 550 buildings with 7.2 million square feet of maintainable space across an estimated 4,000 square miles. Utility consumption comprises a significant portion of the operational cost for these facilities. The Smart system was designed with open protocol/remote access and operates as a supervisory system with the pre-existing building management systems. Finally, the Smart system facilitates real-time decisions while taking into account user/client requirements, as well as the characteristics of the building such as occupancy and hours of operation.