By Tim Shinnick, PE, QCxP, CEM, Associate, and Justin D’Arcy, PE, Director of Analytics
Most people visualize energy savings when they think of fault detection and diagnostics (FDD) software. But saving money on energy costs is just the beginning of the power of a quality FDD platform.
Trend Sumo®, Grumman|Butkus Associates’ in-house FDD software application, is an advanced analytics platform focused on building automation system (BAS) trend data. Trend Sumo leverages the power of automation to clean, organize, and analyze large quantities of data. The platform ingests data from the BAS and conducts an in-depth review for each HVAC system to pinpoint operational inefficiencies that can lead to energy loss or occupant discomfort.
Typically, fault detection and analytics projects focus on energy savings. But the equipment performance data collected by Trend Sumo can also streamline future troubleshooting. Instead of waiting for maintenance to be triggered by hot and cold calls or gradual, large-scale degradation of system operations, analytics can help the facility team identify issues earlier. A faster response can prevent significant issues with occupant comfort, as well as unduly high operating costs.
Get the Most From Your Data
Here are some of the most important ways Trend Sumo can help you maximize your building and its systems:
- Identify operational problems before they become a major issue. Systems fail differently. There may be a slow degradation of performance or immediate failure. Depending on the system, building operators may not realize systems have failed until someone complains. Trend Sumo identifies the failure as soon as it happens, giving the team more time to respond. Consider a system where a chilled water valve stops working correctly in March. People may notice that the temperature is warm once a week, but no one complains. When consistent warm weather arrives, this issue requires immediate resolution.
- Improve occupant comfort by efficiently reviewing individual zone data to find areas of potential improvement (Fig. 1, below).
Fig. 1: Zone performance summary report
- Prioritize the issues that have the greatest impact on system performance. Analyze days, weeks, or years of data to identify problematic systems that merit additional investigation or possible replacement. Trend Sumo can enable data-driven decision-making processes through efficient data analysis (Fig 2, below).
Fig. 2: Floor plan markup summarizing months of performance data
- Key performance indicators can be calculated, allowing the facility team to compare equipment performance (Fig. 3, below)
Fig. 3: Air-handling unit key performance indicators report
- Document system performance. Whether documentation is required for regulation, tenant contracts, or internal monitoring, Trend Sumo reports are customizable to efficiently track performance.
- Improve resiliency by investigating and addressing the root of problems rather than applying quick overrides.
Trend Sumo Life Cycle
The Trend Sumo life cycle is summarized in Fig. 4.
Fig. 4: Trend Sumo life cycle
This software, in combination with expert input by GBA engineers and appropriate action by the facility staff or other professionals, can:
- Identify operational issues throughout a facility.
- Prioritize issues that need attention, based on system criteria, deviation from setpoint, or energy impact.
- Resolve issues by coordinating with the service team.
- Verify that issues have been resolved through data analysis.
Our team of professional engineers is prepared to investigate tough questions, such as “Why is a critical space no longer maintaining correct pressurization?” or “Why is the building stack effect worse this winter than in previous years?”
Contact us; our team is ready to help you find the best solutions for your most puzzling problems.
