ControlTalk Now : Sales, Marketing, Products and Technical Tips for HVAC and Smart Building Controls Professionals

The CTA Awards Committee thanks this week’s Platinum Sponsor DG Logik for their continued support. DGLux provides you with all of the tools you need to build applications or “App Yourself” without ever writing code. Use the dockable functionality for automatic layout, positioning, and scaling of charts and components to build elaborate dashboards in minutes; or take advantage of the free positioning canvas with the freedom to create dynamic interactive applications. CUSTOMIZABLE INTERFACES – SOPHISTICATED, PERSONALIZED DASHBOARDS.

BAS Cyber Risks: It’s Not Just About the Numbers. It’s a Business Case. Corporations must budget money for insurance and good legal advice. The rising Cyber Threat and the possible consequences, fully justify IT security measures. The following article by Marc Petock, Vice President of Marketing at Lynxspring, Inc., as published on AutomatedBuildings.com, provides a compelling business case.

Contemporary Controls: BASremote Updated with Trending and Password Authentication: October 2013 — With the release of 3.7.0 firmware, the popular Contemporary Controls BASremote has been enhanced with a new trending feature and Password Authentication. Additionally, firmware updates are now much easier and can be completed via a webpage.

Announcing The 2013 ControlTrends Awards Finalists: The ControlTrends Awards Committee thanks its world-wide community for its participation in selecting these prestigious nominees. The ControlTrends Awards proudly presents the 2013 ControlTrends Finalists.

Install Honeywell MVN Valve Actuators Without Using Tools: Honeywell has introduced a very cool easy to install valve actuator, the Honeywell MVN valve actuator. With no tools needed for installation, thanks to a one handed click design, the Honeywell MVN actuator provides faster and easier installation and less commissioning time than other ball valve actuators.

Transformative Wave’s CATALYST Averaged 57% Energy Savings On Existing Packaged RTUs. EasyIO’s Seattle based OEM achieves excellent Energy Report: Department of Energy Report Validates Transformative Wave’s CATALYST as a Retrofit Solution Providing on Average 57 Percent Energy Savings On Existing Packaged Rooftop Units!

Ken’s TOP 5 Information Pivot Points of Week 43: 1. Join Jim Young, Howard Berger, Darrell Smith, Brad Sill and many others at CoRE Tech 2013, a unique gathering of the world’s most proactive, visionary corporate real estate, facilities, energy, sustainability, HR and IT executives.

Product Review: The Johnson Controls Va...

ControlTalk NOW thanks Controlco, one of the most preeminent distributors in the western part of the United States, for being this week’s sponsor and a 2013 ControlTrends Awards Platinum Sponsor. Controlco is a premier distributor of automation systems for a broad spectrum of industrial and commercial clients. “With state-of-the-art products and a full suite of value-added services, we offer a total solution for your automation needs. Since 1958, we have provided hundreds of clients with a thorough offering of controls, instrumentation, software, and professional services to suit their needs.” Featured product: DataEye.

How to Install a Natural Gas Pressure Regulator: Stromquist and Company handles just about every brand of gas pressure regulator. We stock Maxitrol, Pietro Fiorentini, Itron (Actaris), Sensus, and American Meter. It does not matter what brand gas regulator you are using or if you have a natural gas regulator or a LP Gas pressure regulator they all have one thing in common. If you don’t install the gas regulator correctly it will not work properly.

Honeywell Continues Leadership Role in OpenADR, ComfortPoint Gateway Certified! The OpenADR Alliance continues to grow in importance. Honeywell’s participation and recent product certification provides an excellent overview of the OpenADR development and energy provider benefits. OpenADR is for real!

ControlTalk NOW’s first guest is Functional Devices’ Laura Conkle ([email protected]). Laura highlights products from Functional Devices extensive product portfolio. Functional Devices is a globally recognized manufacturer of building automation peripheral devices. energy-saving, lighting, and control components, and their famous relay-in-a-box RIB relays.

Improved Order Process for Honeywell Valve Assemblies: Honeywell is excited to announce that in a few weeks, they will be introducing the new MVN rotary valve actuator for use with control ball valves and pressure regulated control valves. The new compact design not only saves time, it also saves space, giving installers the flexibility to meet the tight space requirements for any project. The actuator can be connected to the valve with one hand without the use of a tool, dramatically cutting installation time.

CONTROL SCHOOL: THE 411 ON SMOKE DETECTORS: Thanks to Lisa Shoulders from System Sensor for this excellent training course on duct smoke detectors. Lisa breakdown code requirements, installing, testing and troubleshooting duct smoke detectors. This is a must for the HVAC Controls Professional.

A New Way To Program EASY IO Controllers: Our friend Mike Marston from Easy IO turned us on to Chris Schneider from OpenBMCS and Bartech Australia. This looks like a great way to interface with Easy IO products. A special welcome to Chris and the folks down under to the ControlTrends Community.

ControlTalk’s second guest is EasyIO’s

The ControlTrends Awards Nomination Committee wants to remind the ControlTrends Community at large that the nomination period will end at midnight this Tuesday, October 15th, 2013.

ControlTrends thanks this week’s sponsor Johnson Controls and Chris Eichmann. Johnson Controls delivers products, services and solutions that increase energy efficiency and lower operating costs in buildings for more than one million customers. Johnson Controls has been involved in more than 500 renewable energy projects including solar, wind and geothermal technologies, and Johnson Controls solutions have reduced carbon dioxide emissions by 15 million metric tons and generated savings of $7.5 billion since 2000. Many of the world’s largest companies rely on us to manage 1.8 billion square feet of their corporate real estate.

October is National Cyber Security Awareness Month: Provided by Marc Petock, Vice President, Marketing, Lynxspring Inc. This year’s theme is “Our Shared Responsibility,” which all of us in the building and energy management industry –whether you are a technology provider, a system integrator, service provider, IT professional, building owner, in facility management, cyber related issues play an increasing threat within our building and energy management networks.

Message from Honeywell’s Tom Rosback — New BSC GM Announced: Larry Weber has accepted the position of General Manager of Building Control Systems (BCS) effective October 14, 2013. Larry has been with Honeywell for 19 years primarily in Environmental and Combustion Controls in roles of increasing responsibility in Technical Support, Product Marketing, Channel Management, and Strategic Marketing. Most recently, Larry was the Global Strategic Marketing Director for Transportation in Sensing and Controls (S&C). Additionally, Larry has held two roles in China in which he was the Buildings Control Systems business leader (2005-2009) and Strategic Marketing Director (2012).He holds a MBA from Rutgers University and a Bachelor of Science in Mathematics from the University of Minnesota.

ControlTalk NOW first guest: Honeywell’s Amy Anderson tells about Honeywell Momentum On Tour, Keeping our Partners in Motion, Honeywell’s new product release concept to physically bring their new products to their partners, with the hands-on technical and application support.

Project Haystack Joins 2013 ControlTrends Awards Sponsors! The ControlTrends Awards Committee extends its sincere appreciation and thanks to its newest sponsor — Project Haystack! There is a lot going on at Project Haystack – Here’s your opportunity to get involved on the ground floor. Haystack Webinar Tuesday, November 12th, 2013 – Call for Speakers! As part of our ongoing effort to promote Haystack a number of supporters are coming together to produce our first webinar.

Tim Chamblee Unboxes the Honeywell RedLink Thermostat System: The Honeywell RedLink is much more than a thermostat.

ControlTrends thanks this week’s sponsor Lynxspring and Terry Swope. Lyxnspring has changed the way control systems are built and distributed. Embracing open, interoperable platforms, Lynxspring designs, manufactures and distributes JENEsys®, brand Internet based automation technology and device-to-enterprise integration solutions for Building Automation, Energy Management, Cyber Threat and Security Protection, Equipment Control and other Specialty applications.

Honeywell Releases Universal Fire and Smoke Actuator: New and Improved – Fire and Smoke Actuator: Honeywell is pleased to announce the availability of the updated Low/Medium Torque Fire and Smoke Actuator. The updated actuator is a universal replacement for the existing Honeywell and competitor models.

New BAScloudVPN Service from Contemporary Controls — Secure Communications: Downers Grove, Illinois, Contemporary Controls’ new BAScloudVPN service makes it possible to provide secure, remote communication over the Internet by by hosting a Virtual Private Network (VPN) server in the cloud. Internet can be a challenge since firewalls block messages that originate from the Internet. Although it is possible to open up ports in the firewall using Port Forwarding, IT professionals are reluctant to compromise the security of their network and usually decline this type of request. Without permission from the IT department, the systems integrator is left with few options. However, one solution to this problem is to incorporate a VPN.

Contemporary Controls EIPR-V Skorpion VPN Router provides secure remote Virtual Private Network (VPN)

Downers Grove, Illinois (September 2013) – Contemporary Controls EIPR-V Skorpion VPN Router provides secure remote Virtual Private Network (VPN) access to the Internet via a cellular or Ethernet connection. Using the EIPR-V VPN Router in conjunction with our BAScloud VPN service provides an opportunity to enjoy the benefits of a VPN without maintaining a resident VPN.

Honeywell Introduces New Flanged Control Ball Valves: The new VBF5011/5013 Flanged Control Ball Valves can replace legacy V5011A/V5011B and V5013B/V5013C globe valves with enhanced delivery and performance. These valves can be used in hot and chilled water applications with glycol solutions up to 50% in closed loop heating, ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) systems to provide two-position or modulating functions. This field replaceable assembly allows for in-pipe installation without the need for costly and time consuming servicing or re-piping.

The Tom Rosback Interview: A special thanks to Honeywell’s Tom Rosback. Ken and I had the chance to have a candid conversation with Tom about the changes at Honeywell, and the direction the company is headed. Tom was very open and addressed concerns, including Honeywell Spyder issues and the shake up at Tridium. As one of my teachers, a renown expert on leaders and leadership, once told me… “If everyone agrees with what you ...

ControlTrends thanks this week’s sponsor Mike Marston and EasyIO featuring the “Beast from the East.” The EasyIO FG-32 Controller is designed to support Cloud services directly out of the box, without the need of additional gateway devices. The FG-32 leverages Open Source technology to create an Open Environment in a field controller, enabling systems integrators to create their own services and solutions directly within the field controller.

Free Cooling Map for North America (Compliments of the DOE & The Green Grid): Air-Side economizers bring outside air into a building and distributes it to the servers. Instead of being re-circulated and cooled, the exhaust air from the servers is simply directed outside. If the outside air is particularly cold, the economizer may mix it with the exhaust air so its temperature and humidity fall within the desired range for the equipment. The air-side economizer is integrated into a central air handling system with ducting for both intake and exhaust; its filters reduce the amount of particulate matter, or contaminants, that are brought into the data center.

Johnson Controls Announces Discontinuation of FX-PCV1610, FX-PCV1620, and LP-FXVMA Series Controllers: September 16, 2013, Facility Explorer Product Management announces the discontinuation of FX-PCV1610, FX-PCV1620, and LP-FXVMA Series Controllers.

Our first guest on ControlTalk NOW is Dan Flaherty, Johnson Controls Regional Product Distribution Manager, Southeast Systems, North America. Dan reviews the ABCS Conference at the Talking Stick Resort, in Scottsdale, AZ, October 6-9, 2013. There will be a new wrinkle to this ABCS conference — distributors will be joined by their contractor customers. Dan also gives attendees the heads-up on how to best prepare for the conference.

Smart Grid Innovations Demand Interoperability to Accelerate Deployments: Join Smart Grid for an e-Meeting on Sep 26, 2013 at 1:00 PM EDT. Register now! This e-Meeting is offered at no charge and open to the public. Hear from leading experts on how Smart Grid research impacts future products and services and learn how research contributes to new solutions for interoperability for the Smart Grid ecosystem. This panel will be moderated by Steve Widergren, Pacific Northwest National Laboratory and joined by Don Von Dollen, Electrical Power Research Institute; Michael Cohen, MITRE; and Dennis Ray, Power Systems Engineering Research Center.

New Zone Builder Template From our friends at DGLogik (aka “the men in black”) are at it again. In striving to reduce engineering time while creating the best graphics and user experiences, they are constantly working on improving workflows. One example of these improved workflows is how zone overlays are created on floor plans with...

ControlTrends thanks this week’s sponsor Johnson Controls featuring the Micro Drive VFD series, which are a cost-effective solution for low-horsepower applications. Available supply voltages include 115 V, 230 V, 480 V and 575 V models. Micro Drives are designed to provide variable speed control for three-phase motor applications up to 10 horsepower. Standard enclosures are IP-20. Optional UL Type 1 enclosures are available.

Crazy Fall Variable Frequency Drive Promotion For Stromquist Customers: Sorry this promotion is just for Stromquist & Company customers in Georgia and Florida. My bet is that if you are in another part of the country and reach out to one of the other members of Controls Group North America they will hook you up.

The Belimo Zip Economizer Rocks: We really like the Belimo Zip Economizer. Belimo developed the ZIP Economizer to allow for easy user interaction when setting up or troubleshooting Economizer systems and RTUs. The ZIP Economizer is the most technologically advanced Airside Economizer solution.

(Ah Oh, Clint) Secured Cities: Get up Close and Personal with CitiWatch. CitiWatch Services provides state-of-the-art video surveillance cameras throughout the City of Baltimore in an effort to assist police and other city agencies with public safety. The cameras are monitored 24 hours a day, 365 days a year by certified video surveillance monitors with law enforcement backgrounds. According to Baltimore Police Lt. Samuel Hood, the CitiWatch program was launched in 2005 by former mayor Martin O’Malley with an initial deployment of 50 cameras. The program now integrates 538 cameras from across the city into the Criminal Intelligence Watch Center located inside Baltimore Police Department headquarters.

Watch Belimo’s Werner Buck’s Induction Into The 2012 ControlTrends Hall of Fame. Werner Buck’s illustrious career is punctuated by yet another award as the former president of Belimo Aircontrols (USA) and one of the most recognized innovators in the HVAC industry was awarded the inaugural ControlTrends Hall of Fame Award for his outstanding professional and community contributions.

Eagle Technology Launches Asset Management Application on Johnson Controls’ Panoptix® Application Marketplace. Eagle Technology, Inc. has launched its Proteus MMX Asset Manager for Intelligent Facilities solution to help reduce costs of operation through improved asset scheduling and tracking.

How Does a VFD Save Energy and Money? Provided by our friends at The GreenBuildTV Story VFDs (Variable Frequency Drives) are basically a green energy savings product that matches the amount of work or load on a motor to the amount of energy it needs to power that amount of work.

ControlTalk NOW thanks this week’s sponsor: DG Logik. DGLux The Visualization Platform: DGLux is a “drag & drop” visualization platform that enables you to design real-time, data-driven applications and dashboards without ever writing a single line of code. DGBox is a low-cost end to end solution for creating and utilizing appliance applications. The solution consists of DGLux embedded into a commodity hardware box.

Honeywell e-Learning LIVE: Join Honeywell’s WiFi Thermostat Training! Millions of homes today are equipped with Wi-Fi enabled devices, and while a consumer might not understand the technology, they certainly understand what it allows them to do on a daily basis. Learn about the features and benefits of Honeywell’s Wi-Fi thermostats.

Nest (Secretariat), Honeywell (Man o’ War), EnTouch (Citation) Viconics (Manuro), and ecobee (Northern Dancer) — And the Winner is? Now, after two quarters, five thermostat manufacturers are running one of the greatest product races of the last 50 years. At this point, they are almost running neck and neck, and strategic positioning in this third quarter will be critical for the final sprint to the finish line, and ultimately being voted as the 2013 ControlTrends’ Thermostat of the Year. Each contender must rally their communities for both nominations and votes!

BMW not Included: Flashy Welcome to Thermokon Thanos and Modern Living. Are you ready for some European marketing and elegant engineering? Introducing THERMOKON AMERICAS, a well-known multi-national company founded in 1987, that specializes in the manufacturing of traditional sensors, peripherals and controls for Building Controls and HVAC industries. Keep in touch with the future with Thermokon. Now available from authorized distributors.

Episode Three Mark’s Cool Tools: Shining a Light on Safety: Combo Flashlight and Taser. Mark presents another cool tool.

August 22nd DOE’s Live Webinar on the Street and Parking Facility Lighting Retrofit Financial Analysis Tool: The webinar will show how property owners, utilities, energy-efficiency organizations, cities and other government entities can use the tool to compute annualized energy and energy-cost savings, maintenance savings, greenhouse gas reductions, net present value, and simple payback associated with potential lighting upgrades.

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