Best Building Automation Control Brands
Best Building Automation Control Brands
(OP)
Hello,
Interested in opinions of the top/best BAC system manufacturers out there today (Johnson, ALC, etc.). My personal key factors are programmability/maintainability, component interchangeability, technical support, and reliability.
Thanks in advance
Interested in opinions of the top/best BAC system manufacturers out there today (Johnson, ALC, etc.). My personal key factors are programmability/maintainability, component interchangeability, technical support, and reliability.
Thanks in advance





RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
Other than that, it really depends on qualified contractors which brand to use and how good and expensive the support is. We use Honeywell, I heard Johnson has very expensive support. but that really depends on the local people.
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
An example of why the BACnet-laden systems suck is that there are thousands of BAS points versus hundreds. It bogs down the systems in a bad way and I've seen it kill their ability to even graphically function during building standby power.
I liked the TAC versatility because you could change set points, analog inputs, and anything at all, making the system great for testing and commissioning.
Nowadays I like the Niagara platform, simple and web-based. General rule for me is to stay away from the people who got too big for their britches and who have good local support.
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
could you elaborate on pros and cons of NIAGRA Vs BacNet?
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
I was a big fan of National Instruments in school but that's more geared toward lab testing. It shouldn't be too hard to find one that suits us (like NI), but it's hard to get literature from most of the big outfits without being forced to talk to a sales person.
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
Cry22: Niagara is a platform by Tridium. honeywell, et al license that and buidl their own hardware. Like windows in a way. The advantage is if you know Honeywell, you should be able to program Johnson control etc. Also the hardware supposedly is interchangeable. although I'd think using same manufacturer controllers and JACE is best. It is JAVA based.
BACNET is just a protocol, like Lonworks and Modbus etc. BACNET is favored by ASHRAE, but Lonworks is not worse. Most equipment has BACNET or LONworks options to communicate hundreds of points. but it is not tied to Niagara.
google, look here etc.
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
I think I’ve just opened the door for the BAS folks to attack… Bring it on – I’m in here to learn as well!
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
I took a look at Schneider, and like their other products, they seem to fit. Anyone have any specific negatives on Schneider?
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
For selling and installing systems contractors typically just use one brand. To your client it doesn't' matter anyway as long as it is Niagara. But maintaining certifications and knowing all the ins and outs for several brands seems impractical for a small shop.
ChasBean1: I don't know why having more points should slow down your BAS. Something must be wrong. How many points you can see via BACNET depends on the device and how many it ha. Could be 10, could be 100. Monitoring chiller compressors etc. doesn't really use resources... you don't really do anything with that. If your system is slow, could be network problem ,or whoever programmed it made it bad. the frontend is JAVA based, so may be an issue with your PC. It for sure is not the fact that you may read too many points. and most of the BACNET points are read-only. You usually don't process all those chiller refrigeration pressure data...
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
but what it comes down to is that the local Honeywell contractor is really good to work with. From a controller point I'm sure all major manufacturers will be good - the actual support is what matters.
RE: Best Building Automation Control Brands
Around here the installers install for nothing and charge like wounded bulls for service, fitouts etc. The best you can hope for is good service while you are getting your wallet emptied. I know it sounds jaded but the reality is some building owners here are pulling out five year old BAS (three building worth) to remove themselves from the clutches of a particular brands high prices and low quality service.