Hotel Developer Reduces Electricity Costs

Challenge:

A hotel developer wants a more cost effective solution than a room-key switch for managing energy costs for each room.

Solution:

The room-key switch requires substantial additional wiring for each room, increasing the capital cost. It is also easily defeated and hotel customers view them as an inconvenience. Akida’s innGAUGE system not only gives direct control over a room’s energy usage but also provides useful data on the actual energy consumption. As this was a new-build, the developer was able to decide whether the ECU’s should control the power supply to the whole room or just the AC units since the ECU could be incorporated directly into the circuit wiring. The developer decided to have the ECU’s installed such that each room’s power supply was measured and controlled. The innGAUGE control server was installed in the IT room so that it could be connected directly to the network hub. The hotel’s operation team developed procedures instructing staff on when to turn power on and off to each room. They also developed a routine to import energy usage data into their cost accounting system to allocate costs by room. The maintenance staff was given reports from the system to help identify potential problems, which could lead to inefficient energy consumption. The hotel management team has commissioned a project to utilize the innGAUGE system’s ability to integrate data from remote sensors such as photo sensors and motion sensors to create an automated control system. A system integrator proposed a very reasonable budget for the software development since the Akida hardware used standardized communication protocols using ASCII and no effort would be necessary for decoding the data.

Results:

The hotel developer was able to deliver a sophisticated energy management system as an integral component of the facility at a nominal cost. The project’s electrical contractor installed the system at no additional cost since it does not require any more wiring. The operations team saw lower energy costs immediately when comparing costs with other facilities. There were no complaints from the hotel’s customers probably because they never noticed the system since it is totally in the background and invisible. The hotel’s profitability was much higher than comparable facilities and it was primarily due to lower energy costs.

Conclusion:

For new construction Akida’s innGAUGE system offers the best ROI in the industry for energy management systems. The system offers the flexibility of cost effective customized expansion with additional devices and features.