Blackburn Cathedral is benefiting from reduced energy consumption and utility bills further to the installation of a modern building management system (BMS) provided by Open Building Systems (OBS).
Mechanical contractor Thermatic Maintenance tasked OBS with installing a sophisticated BMS to replace the Cathedral building's dated and inefficient proprietary system. Using technology provided by world building controls manufacturer, Delta Controls, OBS engineers connected the new boiler plant equipment and Combined Heat and Power (CHP) unit to the BMS.
Unlike traditional power generators, the ‘waste' heat that is produced by the CHP generator engine is captured and then used to supply heat and electricity to the Cathedral and its domestic hot water systems (DHWS).
In addition, the BMS is programmed to monitor the temperature outside the Cathedral. It then uses this data to correlate internal temperatures with the external climate, which enables the vast internal space to be heated more efficiently.
Delta's ORCAweb software provides the front end to the BMS and allows local users to view the device architecture of the system on customised web pages in the form of 3D animated graphics. This makes it simple for Cathedral clergy to actively manage the whole system and be alerted to any faults on screen, without the need to physically inspect the plant equipment.
Overall, the BMS is designed to save time and reduce energy consumption. It is anticipated that the Cathedral's energy use will be reduced by almost 30% – equating to a saving in the region of £15,000 per year.