The intelligent control of your ventilation and air conditioning system

If our goal is to obtain the highest energy efficiency in our building, we must ensure we exercise intelligent control over our ventilation and air conditioning system. In this article, we will emphasize the importance of intelligent control systems over ventilation and air conditioning systems, which aim to increase the energy efficiency of buildings so that they tend toward nearly zero energy consumption (the European Union outlines guidelines promoting Nearly Zero Energy Buildings, or NZEB).

Towards a reduction in energy demand

The constant increase in energy prices and increasingly demanding regulatory requirements have raised interest from contractors, architects, engineers, property owners, and other building occupants about the concept of energy efficiency in buildings. How can we get our ventilation and air conditioning system to achieve the desired levels of energy efficiency? According to the Energy Demand Management Guide of the Energy Foundation of the Community of Madrid (FENERCOM), it is necessary to comply with the following guidelines:

• Ensure that the energy for heating and cooling generated meets the real needs at each moment.

• Make efficient use of heating and cooling "at no cost", taking advantage of solar and geothermal energy, as well as the effects of nighttime ventilation and cooling.

• Ensure that energy (heat and cold) is distributed efficiently throughout our building, and minimize losses.

• Seek to use renewable energy sources as much as possible. If fossil fuels are used as an energy source, strive for the highest possible efficiency (low-temperature boilers).

• Establish an optimal adjustment in cases of existing ventilation and air conditioning installations.

• Try to reduce the electricity consumed by ventilation and air conditioning systems, using circulation pumps, fans, etc.

The Regulation on Thermal Installations in Buildings (RITE, 2007) also indicates that we must select both heating and cooling generation equipment, as well as those intended for the movement and transport of fluids, based on their capacity to achieve their performance as close as possible to their maximum efficiency, regardless of their operating conditions.

The intelligent control of your ventilation and air conditioning system

The implementation of modern and intelligent control technology over our ventilation and air conditioning systems can translate into significant energy savings, especially in commercial buildings. By optimizing the control parameters of the systems (replacing classic control algorithms with innovative energy-saving solutions, for example), energy savings of up to 15% can be achieved.

Given the costs, most systems only employ heating control systems with temperature control of the fluid based on external conditions. To mitigate the disadvantages of controlling the internal temperature of a building based on the outside temperature, it is essential that the implemented control technology maintains the fluid temperature setpoint at the lowest possible level. There are special controllers on the market that achieve this by automatically adapting the heating curve (which, in turn, adapts to the building). This climate-based control of ventilation and air conditioning systems also prevents recording the influence of solar radiation, heat generated by electronic equipment, or the occupancy of the premises (it is estimated that each person occupying a space generates about 60-100 W of thermal energy due to their metabolic activity).

The regulations (RITE, 2007) require installations to have all the necessary regulation and control systems so that the designed conditions in the air-conditioned spaces can be maintained, and, in turn, adjust energy consumption to variations in thermal demand (and, of course, interrupt the service when necessary).

Integral smart management of systems: the immediate future

Different systems within a building typically use different communication protocols. While integration issues are usually resolved through gateways, a single piece of hardware can replace several gateways, even providing centralized functions (registration and storage of measured data, alarm management, or a graphical interface for users). How does an integration platform work? The integration platform, which supports multiple protocols, acts as a decentralized information hub that reads information from various subsystems through communication protocols via controllers.

In short, if we want to significantly increase the energy efficiency of our building, it is necessary to implement modern and efficient controls for ventilation and air conditioning systems, as well as to apply current smart technology capable of managing these systems.