White Paper

usa.siemens.com/buildingtechnologies
A white paper issued by: Siemens
© Siemens 2017. All rights reserved.
new enterprise or tenant demands difficult because groups of
existing spaces generally are zoned together.
“When you have a single room per zone, whether it be lighting
or HVAC, it’s much easier to reconfigure,” says Cardoso. “If you
want to move that room or rededicate it to something else,
you’re dealing with a single zone servicing that space, instead
of affecting other spaces that may not need physical
reconfiguration.”
Overall, Cardoso sees many efficiencies with a well-integrated
room automation system, particularly when office spaces and
conference rooms are unoccupied. “You may have someone
on a business development trip, who’s gone for four days with
his door closed.” In that scenario, the room’s lights can remain
off, the HVAC go back to its unoccupied setpoint temperature,
and shading can continue operating to make sure the room
does not become overheated by direct sunlight. “I can see a
number of efficiencies that can be gained from controlling all
three,” notes Cardoso.
A single-system approach brings another major benefit to
building owners. “The advantage of a single source is support
of the system,” Cardoso says. “You get the support that you
need for the life of the system. And you’re buying a system
that’s also been tested and designed in a certain way.”
What’s more, the building owner only has one service
contract to cover controls for all three systems. Those
savings, by one owner’s estimate, were in the range of 35
percent to 40 percent.
Total Room Automation
A single system and infrastructure that controls HVAC, lights,
and shades meets the needs of architects, contractors,
consultants, and building owners. There are two options for
achieving that goal: custom integration or a single product
that offers prepackaged control of all three systems. Desigo
Total Room Automation from Siemens provides control of
HVAC, lighting, and shades in one product.
Desigo Total Room Automation consists of programmable
and configurable room controllers, sensors, and actuators
that can be seamlessly incorporated into the Desigo CC
building management platform. The integration of data
makes it easier to manage the three systems from a central
White Paper | June 2017
Research studies have suggested that
occupants can play a significant role in
saving energy. For example, a recent
Munich study found that involving
European occupants can produce energy
savings of up to 25 percent.
Another study by researchers from
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory in
tandem with Taiwan’s Industrial Technology
Research Institute modeled occupant
behavior in the United States. Researchers
categorized occupant behaviors by how
they could be expected to use room controls
to adjust HVAC, occupancy lighting, and
daylighting controls.
Researchers concluded that workers who
did the most to save energy could save
between 42 percent and 50 percent of
source energy compared to typical workers,
while those who did the least would
consume between 74 and 89 percent more
energy than average.
The researchers also reported studies
showing energy savings from 5 to 30
percent from changes in occupant
behavior. An integrated system can make
it easier to involve building occupants in
energy efficiency efforts.
For example, with Total Room
Automation, users are able to operate the
HVAC, shading, and lighting systems from
room control units with a touch display.
There are several methods of controlling
the system: at the control unit or through
PCs, smartphones, or tablets. An energy
optimum control feature detects
unnecessary energy consumption and
visualizes it in a leaf symbol. If energy
consumption is too high, the leaf symbol
turns red. Simply by pushing the red
symbol, the occupant can return room
control to its energy-optimized setpoints,
allowing the room to save energy and
costs easily.
Making It Easier for Occupants to Save Energy
Desigo Total Room Automation from Siemens provides
control of HVAC, lighting, and shades in one product.