Industry News

September 2011

Ebtron Products are BTL Listed

LORIS, SC - Ebtron is the only AFTMS supplier that provides RS-485 products embedded with the BACnet^® protocol in every RS-485 product manufactured.

Ebtron's network products are truly "network ready" and are easy to set up due to their MS/TP master node implementation. There are no add-on parts involved.

• Digital communications provide elementary advantages over analog outputs:
• Reduces field wiring, materials and complexity
• Allows greater transmission distances with automatic error checking
• Virtually eliminates electrical interference with no data degradation
• Eliminates the cost of D/A and A/D converters
• Eliminates typical resolution issues
• Includes internal fault/no fault notification
• Permits more data available to the host control system
• Can be connected anywhere on the network.

RS-485 with BACnet is a no-charge option and standard feature on all Ebtron RS-485 network products. Competitor's analog device products typically require a separate "bridge" to the RS-485 BAS network, with a final cost of about twice that of Ebtron AFTMS in order to provide BACnet operability.

Click on the Model above to learn more about these network products
and confirm BACnet the listings at the BTL website.

Survey says: HVAC and controls upgrades among top energy-efficiency steps

ATLANTA, GA - Energy continues to be a leading priority around the world. Upgrades to HVAC systems and controls are among the most common steps decision makers take to improve their energy efficiency, yet barriers to action still exist. Those results were reported in the Global Energy Efficiency Indicator (EEI) survey. The Global EEI survey was conducted online by Johnson Controls' Institute for Building Efficiency, the International Facility Management Association (IFMA), and the Urban Land Institute (ULI). The research report, which targets professionals responsible for commercial energy management around the world, includes responses from nearly 4,000 building owners and operators in 13 countries on six continents.

Read More

New ASHRAE Guideline 10-2011, Published

ASHRAE Guideline 10-2011, Interactions Affecting the Achievement of Acceptable Indoor Environments, calls attention to many interactions that designers might not have previously recognized or understood. The guideline contains an assembly of available knowledge on the complexity of the indoor environment and its impact on building occupants. Guideline 10-2011, Interactions Affecting the Achievement of Acceptable Indoor Environments, is available at www.ashrae.org/bookstore.

Legislation on Energy is Not Far Off the National Agenda

WASHINGTON DC, - Work in the nation's capitol continues on several legislative bills of interest to the HVAC industry. Below are short summaries and updates of four bills that are in process

• Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act of 2011 (S. 1000): Would direct the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to establish goals of net zero energy buildings for new commercial and residential buildings by 2030. This would be accomplished by updating the national model building energy codes for commercial and residential buildings. ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1-2010 and the 2009 IECC would be the baselines for commercial and residential buildings, respectively. Under this bill, DOE would establish both aggregate and intermediate energy savings targets. ASHRAE/ICC would have 180 days to incorporate these changes into 90.1/IECC. If ASHRAE/ICC does not incorporate these changes, DOE would create its own code to be used as the new national model building energy code for commercial/residential buildings. Such a code would be based on 90.1/IECC, but DOE may also consider other model codes or standards. This may become law and provides law makers with power over the consensus process of experts in the field.
  
  
• National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2012 (H.R. 1540/S. 981): Passed in the Senate in late May, this bill includes a requirement for the Department of Defense (DoD) to deliver a report to Congress containing a cost-benefit analysis of adopting ANSI/ASHRAE/USGBC/IES Standard 189.1 versus ANSI/ASHRAE/IES Standard 90.1 for the sustainable design and development for construction and renovation of DoD buildings and structures. You may remember that Standard 189.1 serves as a jurisdictional compliance option of the International Green Construction Code.
  
  
• Department of Defense Energy Security Act of 2011 (H.R. 2266/S. 1204): Introduced in June, this bill contains many of the same ASHRAE-related provisions as the act described above. However this bill would go a step further, and require the Secretary of Defense to prescribe DoD-wide standards for the design, construction, and renovation of DoD facilities that would mandate energy efficiency standards equivalent, at a minimum, to ASHRAE Standard 189.1. These standards would go into effect by January 1, 2014.
  
  
• Practical Energy Plan Act (S. 1321): This legislation was introduced 6/30, and would set energy targets for Standard 90.1 and the IECC, using 90.1-2007 and the 2009 IECC as the baselines for commercial and residential buildings, respectively. Similar to the Energy Savings and Industrial Competitiveness Act, if future versions of Standard 90.1 and the IECC do not meet the energy targets, DOE would submit amendment proposals to ASHRAE/ICC, with supporting evidence, which would enable Standard 90.1/IECC to meet the energy targets. If Standard 90.1/IECC do not incorporate these changes, and the energy targets are still unmet, DOE would establish a modified code that meets the targets.

Saudi Arabia Plans Mile-High Skyscraper

JEDDAH, SAUDI ARABIA - The Saudi royal family has unveiled plans for a skyscraper that will be exactly one mile (1609 m) high. The 275-floor Kingdom Tower will be twice the height of Burj Khalifa in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, which is currently the world's tallest building. The skyscraper will include hotels, offices, apartments and a shopping center in a total of 12 million ft3 (340 000 m3) of interior space. The building is expected to cost around $19.5 billion. A new city outside the Saudi capital of Jeddah is planned specifically for the building.

Read more...

SACRAMENTO, CA - A recent Workshop conducted at the offices of the California Energy Commission highlighted areas of change that are targeted by the 2013 code regulating both energy use and ventilation in non-residential buildings. Disturbing are some of the concepts that may be included as equivalents for dynamic verification of airflow rates in VAV systems (e.g. CO2 sensors, Supply-Return Calculations, Temperature Balance Ratio, etc.)

Mold Reportedly Growing in Walls at Norman Regional Hospital

OKLAHOMA, CITY OK - According to a whistleblower, construction at Norman Regional Hospital revealed mold growing inside the walls of patient rooms, and the contractor hired to do the construction isn't cleaning it up like he's supposed to.

Read more...

[ for Video ]

Data Centers are popping up everywhere!

LORIS, SC - Some of the most creative and innovative applications of Ebtron products are appearing in Data Centers - not only in North America - but all over the world. Almost every sensor configuration Ebtron makes has been implemented on projects seeking to make the internet an integral part of our working and recreational life. Unfortunately, public discussion and details on many of these proprietary projects are tightly controlled by their clients, owners and operators. So, additional information on these cases remains restricted at the present time, but should emerge more publicly over time.

Airflow Measurement for Data Center Facilities

If you wish to share an opinion with us on any of the information contained in this newsletter, encounter a problem with any of the links provided or if you would like to have someone contact you with details on a product or application; simply send an email to us at: mktg@ebtron.com.

More information on Ebtron products, applications and maintaining adequate space pressurization or ventilation for indoor IAQ is available at our website: www.Ebtron.com.

Copyright 2011, Ebtron, Inc. All rights reserved. This content is protected by United States copyright and other intellectual property laws and may not be reproduced, rewritten, distributed, re-disseminated, transmitted, displayed, published or broadcast, directly or indirectly, in any medium without the prior written permission of Ebtron, Inc.