This post is sponsored by J.M. Electrical, the premier professionals in advanced automated building control systems and energy management. Buildings are getting smarter, are you? Learn more about JME and their work in and around the Boston area.

Fall has officially arrived and that means time for a fresh look. ‘Tis the season for makeovers, but this time we’re not talking about fashion. We’re talking about makeovers for your building. 

Is your facility stuck in the 20th century? Whether it’s a commercial, real estate, or mixed-use structure, it could be long overdue for a new facade, fresh flooring, or modern appliances. But refurbishing a building’s looks is only half the battle. You need to upgrade buildings where it really counts: energy usage.

Now is the time to give your building an energy makeover. Buildings consume a whopping forty percent of our nation’s total energy, according to the National Institute of Building Sciences. Especially in an historic city like Boston, there are numerous buildings with outdated systems that waste energy and harm the environment. The bad news is these aging structure’s systems cause operational and maintenance costs to skyrocket. The good news is this can be easily fixed through a process called retrofitting.

Retrofitting involves adjusting or replacing old infrastructure in existing buildings with new technology to improve performance. This could include numerous internal upgrades from replacing lighting systems to installing internal climate sensors. But no retrofit is complete without replacing outdated energy management systems with a modern, state-of-the-art building automation system.

A building automation system, or BAS, is a centralized control system which monitors an entire building’s functionality including heating, ventilation, air conditioning (HVAC), lighting systems, and often water, fire and life safety. In outdated buildings, these systems are often siloed, which often leads to energy-wasting conflicts, like simultaneously blasting heat and AC, for example. By integrating all these functions in a unified system, they can communicate with one another preventing such inefficiencies.

Today’s BAS are cloud-based as well. With the sophisticated computing power of the cloud in control, building automation systems can collect massive amounts of data and respond in real-time, adjusting the temperature or the lighting systems optimize efficiency. It also means building performance can be controlled anytime anywhere. No wires or clunky 80s-era computers? That’s what I call a makeover.

For more on building automation: What Makes a Smart Building ‘Smart’?

Overall, a retrofit complete with a building automation upgrade will empower your building to operate at a higher capacity, improving its overall performance and increasing efficiency. Most makeovers cost money, but this one that actually saves you cash. Retrofitting an old building is usually greener and less costly than building a new high-performance facility, Environmental Building News said, and upgraded BAS systems can generate savings of up to fifteen percent annually following installation, and potentially more over time, according to Environmental Leader.

For a greener building and a greener wallet, consider giving your building an energy makeover.

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