Educational

Features expected

Automation, control and supervision

Energy and economic saving
    Automation systems can play a fundamental role in reducing energy consumption in the tertiary sector which has now become the most energy-intensive sector in industrialising countries. The standard EN 15232 standard allows a simple and recognised estimation of energy and economic savings related to the adoption of an automation system that was previously quite delicate and complex.

Communication
    The communication between different sub-systems within the same building or the visualisation via the internet of images of the rooms following an alarm, are functions easily achievable in a bus system. A bus system can satisfy communication needs related to security, control and entertainment such as the activation of video surveillance cameras or the sending via internet of images of the rooms following an alarm, it allows to understand if there is really the issue or if it is just a false alarm.All the functions implemented in the various systems of a building can also be controlled remotely through the use of web servers or remote controllers on land or mobile networks. The video system becomes an integral part of the automation system, allowing, among other functions, communication between the different workstations within the same structure.The different communication solutions between staff and between them and occupants allow for important results, including ease of use, savings in installation and management and improvement of the service offered.
The main points to be considered are:
Simplicity of wiring; Using bus technology wiring for the connection between the devices, all data and information travel on a simple twisted pair, thus saving on the material and time spent laying the cables. Using a 6-conductor cable, you can also bring power and speech to the various devices. The possibility of using a simple 6-conductor cable compared to the considerable bundle of cables (or the large multipolar cable) traditionally used, considerably facilitates installation, reducing installation times.
Modularity: By turning to systems that use modular technology, it is possible to make the system evolve over time, starting from the basic functions and subsequently adding the other functions, without nullifying the investments already made.
Continuity of service and ease of maintenance; By taking advantage of the internal self-diagnosis and anomaly recognition functions present in some systems, it is possible to immediately identify any faults. If necessary, the electronic modules can be replaced without having to interrupt the operation of the system, thus ensuring continuity of service. In addition, the electronic room control modules, if installed in the corridor, could be replaced without having to enter the patient’s room. In this way, no disturbance is caused to the patients and doctors and nurses can safely continue to operate according to their needs, while the technical maintenance staff can intervene promptly.

Access control
MODULAR; Modular architecture with standalone graphics or that can be integrated into third party SCADA systems.
SIMPLE CONFIGURATION; Plug and play system. Just add the devices on the KNX line.
SIMPLE MANAGEMENT: Procedures for assigning access permissions simplified with various levels of user privilege.
DIAGNOSTICS; Integrated diagnostics for system alarms or faults.
EXTENSION; Simple and minimally invasive functionality extension.

Security
    The integration of systems such as the alarm system, video surveillance and technical alarms allows to reduce installation costs without affecting performance. The presence alarm system can communicate with the video surveillance, lighting and other systems of the structure: the integration of the different systems therefore allows for a higher level of security and lower costs than single stand-alone systems. Many devices can be used multi-functionally by several systems.

Comfort
    The increase in the comfort offered by the building and the quality of living are among the best-known advantages of an automation control system. Lights and shutters of a room or a series of rooms can be grouped so that they can be controlled automatically or autonomously even by fragile people. This allows to conveniently turn off all the lights in an area with a single gesture, close the windows, put all the systems you want in standby condition (e.g., cooling), activate alarms, etc. By integrating the traditional functions of an electrical system with the control and automation functions of communication to and from the building, the usability of the structures is increased. Through thermoregulation, the system plays a fundamental role not only in minimising consumption, but also in improving comfort. People with disabilities or with temporary or permanent mobility limitations can receive assistance in using the spaces and their functions. The solutions that in most cases meet these needs can be video surveillance cameras; dedicated voice commands; remote controls with specific features such as large, illuminated buttons; large parade buttons; alarms reported on mobile phones in case of detection of flooding, gas leaks, open doors or windows, etc.; emergency call with dedicated or pull button. HVAC control - Comfort and efficiency in the same architecture:
HVAC SYSTEMS; All HVAC is managed by the building management system,
CENTRALIZED THERMAL EQUIPMENT; All the equipment for heating and cooling (Boiler - Chiller-UTA - VRV Free cooling) can be integrated into the system and managed locally by PLC / Inverter,
INTEROPERABILITY; All the communication protocols can be integrated,
DISTRIBUTED EQUIPMENT AND SENSORS; All the equipment and sensors distributed in the rooms (fan coils, valves and thermostats) can be integrated and managed on the KNX protocol.
FLEXIBILITY: A flexible and modular architecture allowing to face all the possible cases.

Energy Management
Managing and controlling building energy consumption
    Energy Managers, building owners, and Facility Managers are all too familiar with the pressure to reduce costs and energy consumption while maintaining occupant comfort. Energy management includes planning and operation of energy production and energy consumption units as well as storage and energy distribution. Objectives are resource conservation, climate protection and cost savings, while the users have permanent access to the energy they need. It is connected closely to environmental management, production management, logistics and other established business functions. In this sense, the choice of tool for managing and controlling building energy consumption and costs together with the BMS and the electrical power distribution schemes constitute the fundamental elements of the design of an electrical system, on which the analysis and development of the solution will depend. The ideal tool for managing and controlling building energy consumption and costs is user friendly, reporting and charting are so intuitive and easy to understand that it is not limited to use by expert energy managers. The solution shall be tailored to meet the individual requirements of each customer. The right solution focuses on energy management in order to analyse energy consumption and target savings in a building, enabling energy efficiency improvements and the continuous commissioning of the building.

Building Energy Manager System
    Cloud-based BEMS access to the meter and sensor information in the building over the internet. The information is collected from the BAS via a secure fixed IP connection and the end-user accesses their information by logging into a dedicated website using their unique username and password. No limit to the number of meters and sensor points you can connect to the service across any geographical location is essential for large organisations but useful also for any other context. The possibility to works with any third-party systems such as Tridium, BACnet, and standalone systems via the SQL or MS Access database where the meter and sensor information is stored is crucial to avoid any limitation in existing building as well as in fully new installations.

Analysis and charting
    The BEMS analysis and charting shows how, where, and when energy consumptions are. Energy consumption data can be analysed in a number of different ways from spectral analysis displays, regression analysis, actual versus target graphing, and lots more.
Charting: View real-time energy information in day, week, month, year and custom view, Compare time periods, meters and export data.
Analysis: View energy patterns using the Spectral Analysis tool, set targets based on driving factors or fixed parameters, compare actual versus target, Access regression analysis, overspend and consume charts, Analyse energy consumption compared to a smart target for real-time energy management.
Reporting: Reports are an important tool for ongoing energy control by helping managers and key decision-makers keep track of energy-saving initiatives, verify if and where savings have been made, and when targets have been achieved. Fully customised reporting feature allows to generate instant or scheduled reports on energy consumption, costs, carbon emissions, performance versus targets, as well as tenant costs reports. 

Monitoring and alarms
    Alarms viewed via the map-based interface are particularly useful for a quick overview of multiple buildings in multiple locations for bureau or monitoring centers: Anomalies detected in energy consumed versus expected consumption, Alarm reports issued via email, Analysis of historical alarms can help identify potential ongoing issues.

Increasing awareness & encouraging behavioral change
    A web-based public information display can communicate information on a building’s energy performance and provides tips and recommendations of how employees can assist in reducing energy consumption. By publicly engaging people in energy efficiency behavioral change, there is the potential to improve energy efficiency by a further 5% over other energy efficiency measures in an organisation. It also goes beyond the building bringing this positive behavior into the wider public arena. Improve building energy performance, Energy savings of up to 5% over other energy efficiency measures through behavioral change, reduce cost and carbon footprint, Communicates energy policy & strategy to the public, according with ISO 50001.

Service continuity
General distribution schemes
    There are no real specific technical standard references for the choice of the electricity distribution scheme, also in consideration of the fact that this choice is necessarily free and dependent on the process served. Electricity distribution systems are a fundamental infrastructure for most business processes and help to determine their performance in terms, for example, of energy management, safety, reliability and maintainability. If plant safety is an essential property as a legal requirement, reliability, availability and maintainability are instead characteristics of the plant that directly impact the business. The possible configurations that an electrical distribution system can assume can generally be traced back to three fundamental schemes: the simple radial scheme; the double radial scheme; the ring. 

Lobby
    The lobby space type includes foyers, entries to halls, and security screening areas at or near the entrance to a building or demarcated space, and are meant to welcome and direct students, teachers and visitors, control access, and provide exit ways from buildings. This space type is often designed with both secure and non-secure areas. Large or small, the lobby in your school should be comfortable and accommodating for students, parents, guests, and school staff. Similarly, a school or university “commons” is a space that can be utilised by the entire campus, typically by varying sizes of groups and with multiple functions. Lobby and common area design must provide spaces for collaboration while providing good accessibility, operational efficiency, safety and security.

Gymnasium
    Gymnasium is a building containing space and equipment for various indoor sports activities, exercise and physical education and usually including spectator accommodations, locker and shower rooms, offices, classrooms, and in some cases, it might have a swimming pool as well. Gymnasium design must provide spaces for collaboration while providing good accessibility, operational efficiency, safety and security.

Auditorium
    Auditorium is a room built in an education building where students, teachers, parents and visitors sit, as distinct from the stage, the area on which the opening exercises, announcement, performance or other object of the audience’s attention is presented. A sloping floor allows the seats to be arranged to give a clear view of the stage. The walls and ceiling usually contain concealed light and sound equipment and air extracts or inlets and may be highly decorated. Lighting control is one the most important factor gets considered while designing auditorium. 

Classroom spaces
    A classroom or schoolroom is a learning space in which both children and adults learn. Classrooms are found in educational institutions of all kinds, ranging from preschools to universities, and may also be found in other places where education or training is provided, such as corporations and religious and humanitarian organisations. The classroom provides a space where learning can take place uninterrupted by outside distractions. While in campus, students spend most of their time in classrooms and hence it plays very important role overall learning. Classroom environment has an impact on academic outcomes of students but traditionally, classroom environment was focused only on physical look and feel of the environment. Recent studies have suggested that environment parameters like thermal comfort, outdoor light, light intensity, indoor air quality, noise etc. affect student’s ability of focus and hence learn. Post COVID, ensuring indoor air quality and reducing the risk of infection due to pathogen is one of the key focus areas of school and university administration as well as governments.

Science Facilities
    A laboratory is a facility that provides controlled conditions in which scientific or technological research, experiments, and measurement may be performed. Laboratory services are provided in a variety of settings: physicians' offices, clinics, hospitals, and regional and national referral centers. A laboratory school or demonstration school is an elementary or secondary school operated in association with a university, college, or other teacher education institution and used for the training of future teachers, educational experimentation, educational research, and professional development. Many laboratory schools still operate in the Cameroon and around the globe. They are known by many names: laboratory schools, demonstration schools, campus schools, model schools, university-affiliated schools, child development schools, etc., and most have a connection to a college or university. Each university-affiliated school has a unique relationship with a college or university and a different grade configuration. Some lab schools are only for preschool or kindergarten children, some are preschool through fifth or sixth grade, and some continue through high school.

Cafeteria
    A Canteen is a store that sells food and drinks to student, teachers, supporting staff, visitors etc. and provide a space to eat and drink it. Canteen is very important part of any education facility as it plays vital role is students’ health and welfare. The functions of school canteens are to provide a service to the school community and provide a variety of nutritious and attractively presented food and drinks at a reasonable cost and reinforce classroom learning. To ensure the comfort, health and safety of an occupants, canteen must be equipped with necessary systems such as lighting control, HVAC control, emergency lighting, fire alarm etc.

Libraries
    The library space types are areas where bound paper documents, film, or magnetic media are stored. A Library space type may include both open and closed storage systems and moveable shelving systems and be applicable to file rooms and other dense storage of material in conditioned office environments Library buildings often provide quiet and conducive areas for studying, as well as common areas for group study and collaboration, and may provide public facilities for access to their electronic resources; for instance: computers and access to the Internet. Library has different type of spaces such as Collection space, Public electronic workstation space, User seating space, Staff workspace, Meeting space, special use space and non-assignable space. Library spaces must be designed and equipped with necessary systems to make them more accessible, productive, safe, secure and sustainable. 

Underground car park
    A car park is a cleared area that is intended for parking vehicles. Underground car parks are always fully enclosed and requires mechanical ventilation. The air quality and temperature in a car park needs to be managed to ensure those using the car park are not exposed to unsafe conditions. In the absence of proper ventilation, car parks present several indoor air quality problems. The most serious is the emission of high level of carbon monoxide. Apart from air quality, fully enclosed car parks must maintain appropriate level of light to allow people and vehicles move around easily and safely. Lighting may come from natural or artificial sources, or a combination of both. In order to ensure safety of student, teachers and supporting staff, car park must be equipped with necessary safety and security systems like life safety, gunshot detection, evacuation signages etc. Generally, car park spaces in buildings are getting equipped with charging infrastructure to charge the vehicle of people visiting, studying or working in building. 

Open parking
    An open car park is a cleared area that is intended for parking vehicles, bike and motorbike for shorter duration or in some cases longer duration. Open car park does not require any mechanical ventilation, but it must have lighting in place to ensure safe movement of people and vehicle during nighttime. Open car park can also be used for vehicle and motorbike charging. Sometimes lighting arrestor installed on root top of the building to protect building against lightning strike can also be seen from open car park.

Pick-up and drop-off points
    A drop-off and pick-up lane are an area on a street adjacent to school grounds or directly on the school grounds that is dedicated to the loading and unloading of students by private motor vehicles. Pick-up and Drop-off area must have lighting in place to ensure safe movement of people and vehicle during nighttime. Various sign boards are installed in student Pick-Up and Drop-Off to address parking procedures and traffic concerns. Pick-up and drop-off area can also be used to charge fleet vehicles such as school bus.

Administration
    Administration area is the area where not teaching staff sits. Support staff aren’t qualified teaching staff, but they work alongside teachers to support students, some can carry out admin duties and much more. Administrators – These people involved in preparing and maintaining necessary records of students, teachers, supporting staff etc. for the effective operation of a school and record keeping purpose. Finance staff – These people involved in managing finances for the school. They help keep track on expenses and maintain necessary documentation for reporting purpose. Specialist/technical staff - these roles can take place in the classroom and are there when more technical support is needed. For example, during an ICT lesson, a technician may be on hand to make sure it’s carried out correctly. Teaching and learning support - these are roles that involve working in the classroom, either as the main teacher or as an assistant to help them.

Director room
    Director is a person responsible for running the education facility. He manages strategic initiatives and operational priorities including personnel, space and infrastructure. Director act as a point of contact outside education facility local for community, government, and other entities. With the support from school staff member such as finance, facility, administration and teaching, he collects data and generate necessary reports for reporting purpose to various authorities outside education facility.

Command and control center
    A command-and-control center is a secure room in a facility that provides centralised monitoring and controlling of all the systems installed across the education facility. Command and control center can help remove the silos in different building system and help taking well inform decision by interlinking various systems data. Facility staff sitting in command-and-control center continuously monitor and control different system from centralise system to meet the operation requirement of education facility. 

Central energy plant
    Depending on geographical location, education facilities may have been designed with backup utility systems to ensure uninterrupted operation of facility. Depending on system design, component may vary as central utility plant are highly customisable. Generally, systems in utility plant room can be broadly divided in 3 major systems as: - Chilled Water System, Hot Water System, Electrical Power Backup System.

Chilled water system and Hot water system
    The chilled water system in the utility room most likely acts as a single source of cooling energy for most educational facilities. In most of the world, cooling energy for thermal comfort is an important requirement in education, but there are some other applications such as data centers, cold rooms, equipment operating conditions, dehumidification etc. where cooling energy is used. Hot water is an essential building service used for thermal comfort, washing, cleaning, cooking, heating etc. Hot-water systems typically have a central boiler, in which water is heated to a temperature of from 140 to 180 °F (60–83 °C), and then circulated by means of pipes. For huge buildings with centralise hot water systems, heating equipment's like boiler, heaters are isolated from end equipment like AHU, FCU, Hot water tabs, laundry machines, cleaning equipment's etc. by using heat exchangers. 

Electrical room
    Electricity is vital to education operation as well as student and staff safety. When it comes to providing a high-quality educational experience, there’s essentially no margin for error. Electrical requirements for education facilities are strict and adhering to them always is of the utmost importance. Electrical service shall include provision of normal, essential (30 sec.), instantaneous (1 sec.), and uninterrupted (no break) electricity supplies and switchgear and circuit protection to safely operate and control the supplies. High voltage and low voltage devices are installed in electrical room for distribution of electricity to various part of the education facility.