Small Business, Smart Buildings

Smart Buildings Adaptive Systems

This smart-and-networked electrical end-use equipment will also be responsive to human activity by adapting electricity consumption to the needs of the building’s occupants and climate conditions. In the case of lighting, for example, these systems will supply illumination based on the availability of natural lighting plus the illumination needs of a room’s occupants.

In an unoccupied stairwell, the lights will be dimmed to minimum code levels and then brighten once the stairwell becomes occupied. In a conference room, the lights will be off when it’s unoccupied, brightened when it’s occupied and then adjusted with a smart phone when a projector has been deployed. In building spaces with natural lighting, the lighting system will automatically adjust illumination to achieve target lighting levels as sunlight evolves through the day. The end result will be lower lighting costs plus higher lighting quality that aligns with room occupants’ needs.

Solar Technology

Solar is the final technology mega-trend that will enable ZNE buildings. The cost for electricity generated by a rooftop solar system is now approaching 15 cents per kWh, which is often lower than real-time prices. In states that allow net metering, where electricity from a solar system “spins the meter backwards,” the economics of solar can cut monthly electricity bills by 50 percent to 100 percent. But a rooftop solar system is still the most capital-intensive investment per kW a business can make in pursuit of lower electric bills. That said, the cost advantage of a ZNE building is its ability to reduce the size requirements of a solar system.

The Benefits

A ZNE building or “smart building” delivers optimum financial results per invested dollar by:

1. 1. Reducing energy consumption
   2. Avoiding energy consumption during highest price periods on the grid
   3. Buying grid power only when it’s an attractive economic option
   4. Drawing power from a rooftop solar system when that option is cheaper than grid-supplied power

EDITOR’S NOTE: The next article in this series on zero net energy (ZNE) buildings will cover how ZNE buildings will attract quality tenants, increase a building’s valuation and improve work-associate productivity. The third article in this series will be about how to investigate making your building ZNE.

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