Metering is an essential part of building management systems and allows energy managers to understand how much energy a building is using. However, making sense of the data is often difficult with an increasing need to provide greater detail to where the energy is actually being used. Havells Tri-Load and Tri-Load renewable are designed to solve this problem and maximise the effectiveness of a sub-metering installation, says the firm in this sponsored post and video.
There has been an enthusiastic uptake of sub-metering in the UK since legislation was introduced to encourage it (Part L2 of the UK Building Regulations). Part L2 of the building regulations seeks to ensure that new and refurbished non-domestic buildings are designed and constructed with energy management in mind. For the building operator, landlord or tenant, effective sub metering is essential if energy consumption is to be understood in a meaningful way.
There are various approaches to installing sub-metering. In some cases all metering is provided at the in-coming main switchboard. This has the advantage of a simple installation and makes data collection easy. It also gives a good overall picture of energy consumption, however it fails to provide which is useful on one level but does have its drawbacks if more detail is required. Because this type of approach typically monitors a mixed bag of lighting, power, and motors indiscriminately, the resulting energy consumption figures will rarely generate the level of detail that allows meaningful conclusions to be drawn from the collected data. An effective sub-metering installation will deliver information that the building owner / operator can act on.
One such approach is to install a distribution board that breaks down energy use by specific load type. In commercial buildings, the two heaviest electrical consumption loads are typically lighting and small power (plug socket loads). However, other load types, typically mechanical services loads and landlord service loads, can be a significant contributor to overall energy consumption.
There are many boards on the market that allow separate measurement of just two types of load (lighting and power, for example), however there is clearly a need for a board that can monitor three types of load simultaneously, so consumption figures for other categories, such as building services equipment, can be separated out. In this way, the data collected for your client is more accurate and relevant to their actual application.
The power of three
Havells has developed Tri-Load, a UK specific distribution board that squarely addresses the new sub-metering requirements to the mutual benefit of installers and end users.
The Tri-Load distribution board design offers integral metering with the facility to monitor three independents load types from one digital multi-function meter. The boards can be configured to operate as tri-load, or dual-load, using a simple menu interface. This allows users to identify various different load combinations depending on the project metering requirements. This separate energy monitoring for power, lighting and mechanical services, is a practical solution for compliance with Part L2 of the Building Regulations.
In addition to this there are also features designed with the installer in mind, which contribute to improved electrical safety. Current Transformers (CTs) are integrated within a single-piece busbar design to reduce the number electrical connections that are commonly required by other manufacturer’s solutions. This reduces potential hot spot failures. Furthermore, all meters and CTs are fully pre-wired and a trunking interface kit is supplied as standard.
The Tri-Load board has been designed to minimise the amount of on-site work for the contractor (often meaning a reduced number of metered boards are installed), while providing the end-user with improved data collection and reporting functionality.
Going green
Energy managers are increasingly looking to renewables such as PV or wind to reduce their buildings energy footprint. To reflect this growing integration of renewable energy sources in modern building such as micro wind and PV systems, the Tri-Load Distribution board range has been further extended to include a Tri-Load Renewable range. Where required, this version of the board is designed to integrate AC generated supplies from renewable sources and capture the generated kWh information. The board design is essentially the same as the standard Tri-Load board, but the top section of the board accommodates MCB’s serving AC circuits for renewable generated supplies. The benefit of the Tri-Load renewable board is that both import and export energy circuits are captured as distinct load types with the information readily available to the buildings energy management system.
Given the push to decarbonise power, with a greater uptake of micro-generation in buildings to reduce energy costs, it’s essential that building managers are ready and understand exactly how much energy a building is not only using – but also producing.
Says the firm in this sponsored post and video
