Transparent Building System Challenges Tradition

Integrated controls, combined with Schneider Electric's Transparent Building system, provide effective cost control throughout a building's whole life.

Schneider Electric will challenge the traditional approach to building controls at this year's Building Performance show by demonstrating how integrated controls, combined with its Transparent Building system, provide effective cost control throughout a building's whole life.

A traditional building management system depends on a number of dedicated bus systems, such as BACnet, Lonworks or other proprietary systems, to control the sequences between the system management and field device levels.

This approach can lead to blockages in communications making the building control system ineffective, difficult to operate and complex to maintain.

By integrating systems over Ethernet TCP/IP at the management level, Schneider Electric has been able to eliminate a whole layer of the traditional architecture.

This makes the building control system more efficient as there are less communication blockages that may cause a problem.

This allows the management control to directly access field devices for power distribution, facilities management and lighting control while interfacing with the access, security and fires systems.

Transparent Building is an open system that enables information to be presented through a common interface to meet the specific needs of managers, such as the maintenance manager who can, for example, access real-time alarm generation, while the financial controller can see utility reports.

Schneider Electric has a complete range of electrical supply and distribution products to complement the Transparent Building.

These include Voice-Data-Image networks to enhance the communication and feedback as part of the control system.

Schneider Electric can provide a complete range of products and solutions through its three global brands - Merlin Gerin, Square D and Telemecanique.

Schneider Electric will be on stand 540 during the Building Performance show at London Olympia on 6 and 7 October 2004.

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