Smart money is on Trend at SkyCity, Auckland
The updated control infrastructure in one of New Zealand’s premier attractions, SkyCity Auckland, uses equipment from Trend Control Systems to maximise efficiency and create the very best comfort conditions. It is the tallest building in New Zealand, and its 328 m SkyTower has dominated the skyline for 20 years.
There are glass-fronted lifts to three viewing platforms, and adrenaline junkies can take a leap off the SkyTower via the SkyJump.
At the base of SkyTower is the SkyCity entertainment complex with a casino, bars and restaurants, a 700-seat theatre, convention centre and two hotels.
The original controls infrastructure had become unreliable and inefficient, so a replacement was needed
Stuart Bryant, facility services manager, explains, ‘The previous system was costing an increasingly large amount of time, effort and money to maintain. It was a closed protocol, which meant we were tied to one vendor. The time had come to invest in a new BEMS, so I contacted Control Air to see what we could do.
Control Air is one of Auckland’s leading designers and installers of BEMSs and a long-standing Trend Systems Integrator.
The project gave the opportunity to uses the latest devices from Trend and utilise the advantages of an open-protocol solution.
Control Air began by carrying out an energy audit to review how the building was being used and identify opportunities for saving energy. A full business case was presented, with expected return on investment.
Central to the strategy was Trend IQ Vision, which integrates Trend controllers, third-party smart devices and Internet protocols into a centralised software platform that is designed to manage buildings at an enterprise level, giving building owners and managers the ability to identify issues and optimise their systems.
Five new user workstations connect to the IQ Vision server via a client connection for management and maintenance staff to use. They have access to the system, with remote access to the site, via a VPN (virtual private network) connection.
The BEMS operates over a new structured cabling system using Cat 6 copper cable. Connected to it is BACnet-protocol master-slave/token passing (MS/TP) communications cabling which is linked in turn to mechanical-services control panels.
To minimise disruption, the project had to be completed in a fully operational site with no downtime or unoccupied periods. To assist with this, all panels were pre-configured. It was also necessary to integrate some existing BACnet controllers into the BEMS, which was made easier by Trend’s open protocol.
