The Number One Thing That Will Grow Your Business in 2008

http://www.automatedbuildings.com/news/mar08/articles/mcgowan/080225025202mcgowan.htm

An emphasis on value-based systems the save energy does not apply to manufacturers, engineers and contractors only, because consumers have made it clear that they will buy from companies that embrace the notion of green. CEO’s, Mayors, University Presidents and many other leaders buy this idea, offering an unprecedented opportunity to elevate the importance of systems. For many building owners, systems have been out of sight and out of mind. Leighton Wolffe of Constellation NewEnergy said that the “markets are shifting the premise of building automation systems from temperature control to energy control.” Future buildings will embrace Energy Engineered Systems (EES) where occupants define how much comfort they want based upon cost and other factors. Growing emphasis on LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design), Energy Star Buildings and other standards that target the entire design process from site selection to systems reflects this too.

So the time for EES is now. Especially as the traditional construction process becomes more broken; it is harder to deliver value with automation and engineered systems. Design specifications are often not enforced and integrators find it difficult to do the right thing while making projects profitable. So what is the next value proposition? Energy, and key to this proposition is that the entry point for automation and technology into buildings is not through design professionals but through electric meters! The emphasis is that higher energy prices, including $100 per barrel oil, are the most significant thing to happen to system design in decades. Combine that with the impact that the 2030 challenge, etc. believe that building energy consumption has on climate change. Also consider that the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 signed by the President in December mandates that all U.S. buildings will be high performance / energy efficient by 2050.

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