STEP Explained: Part 5 of 5 By Scott Walker, CTS-D, LEED AP The InfoComm AV Sustainability Rating System Task Force has completed the first draft of the detailed credit descriptions, which will comprise a STEP reference guide. This reference guide, along with the latest STEP score sheet, will be made available for public review in the weeks and months ahead. This article is the last in a five-part series outlining the five phases of a STEP project. Part 1 detailed the credits in program (P) phase; Part 2 detailed the credits in architectural and infrastructure design (AI) phase; Part 3 detailed the credits in electronic systems design (SD) phase; Part 4 detailed the credits in electronic systems integration (SI) phase. This month’s article focuses on STEP’s Operations (O) phase. The InfoComm STEP task force had the advantage of creating STEP at a time when many other types of green-building rating systems already existed. Thus, we could learn from all that went before us and attempt to mirror and complement their successes while addressing their shortcomings. One shortcoming of many of these rating systems is their lack of any ongoing accountability metrics to determine the true energy savings and environmental benefit of a green building verses the performance predicted during design. STEP embraces a continuous-improvement mindset throughout, including during ongoing operations. In the fifth and final phase of STEP, Operations Phase, our industry’s technology managers take the lead to leverage all the sustainability tools designed and integrated by the STEP project team to manage their technology systems in an environmentally responsible, energy-conscious and financially beneficial manner. Credit O1: Conduct a STEP phase transition review / Operations kickoff. To earn this credit, the STEP administrator would convene a meeting, using conferencing technology, of the STEP stakeholders to identify the credits to be attempted during the first year of operations and review the tools created during design and construction to track the performance of the building’s electronic systems. Credit O2: Reduce paper use by releasing operations reports electronically. As I have noted in previous articles, one challenge we have in the electronics industry is a lack of good data about the energy consumption of our technologies once they are integrated into a building and the return on investment (ROI) these technologies can offer an owner as these technologies are used over time. STEP encourages owners to report this data and, like other credits throughout STEP design and construction phases, awards a point if all reports are released electronically. Credit O3: Measure and report energy consumption and equipment usage data. This is where the rubber begins to meet the road. In earlier STEP credits, energy consumption was predicted and strategies were followed to minimize energy waste. This credit awards two points for measuring and reporting the actual energy consumption of these systems. This data will prove to be very powerful as we size up our industry’s impact on a building’s energy consumption and refine our tools for estimating AV energy consumption during design. Credit O4: Measure and report network utilization. Credit O4 appreciates the link between AV and IT systems and, similar to Credit O3, awards two points for the measurement and reporting of network utilization of IT networks. The goal is to reduce the waste associated with over-designed, underutilized data networks. Credit O5: Operate systems to reduce energy use by 50 percent versus a non-managed system. This credit awards three points for systems that actively manage energy consumption such that their overall energy consumption is half what it would be if system power were left unmanaged (e.g., in the case of an AV presentation system, if the display is all that is turned on and off). Fifty percent may be a tough goal to meet, but STEP encourages owners to refine their systems’ management strategies over time to meet this goal. Credit O6: Recycle consumables within the system. This credit awards two points if a program of recycling consumables within a system (such as projector lamps and batteries) is followed over the life of the systems. Credit O7: Remote troubleshooting and preventative maintenance. Three points are awarded if the owner and integration partners responsible for warranty support coordinate to allow for remote troubleshooting of systems with the goal of reducing truck rolls and airline travel through the proactive management of systems from a distance. Credit O8 and O9: The Integrated Building Technology (IBT) operations credits. These last two IBT credits reward points for continual improvement of energy-management strategies (O8) and regular recalibration of scheduling software (O9) to optimize systems for energy efficiency. Credit O AV1: Employ an organizational travel policy that promotes unified communications and video as the first choice for remote meetings. If we design and integrate all this great conferencing technology into a project and the project tenants don’t do anything different concerning their travel habits, we’ve missed a great opportunity to effect the kind of culture change necessary to make our systems approach the ultimate goal of carbon neutrality. This credit awards three points for owners who inculcate that cultural change into a formal business practice communicated and followed throughout their organization. Credit O AV2: Measure and report on travel/cost/carbon savings from conference technologies. This is the “show me the money” credit. When an organization can see the real operational savings from using conferencing technologies, its ability to justify more AV spending is greatly enhanced. There are commercially available tools (such as the Video Miles software from The Visual Environment) that cleverly track the time, cost and carbon savings from the use of videoconference technology. Credit O AV3: Leverage digital signage to communicate energy savings and environmental programs. When people are made aware of how their choices impact the environment, energy consumption and perhaps their own pocketbook, behaviors are more likely to change. Beyond merely reporting on a building’s environmental performance in monthly reports or an organization’s sustainability initiatives in some annual report, this credit encourages owners to share their eco story with building occupants and visitors via digital signage where real-time information can be shared. Interactive software tools like Lucid Design Group’s Building Dashboard can allow a viewer to drill down into specific areas of interest to them. This credit adds another justification for the use of digital signage as a primary communication tools within a building. Over the past year as the task force has been hard at work developing STEP, I’ve had the opportunity to present the STEP framework to many different audiences. When I ask people what they think at the end of the presentation, some version of the phrase “insanely ambitious” usually comes out. Yes, there is an air of insanity to STEP, but I tend to view it as “utterly commonsensical” or “the way it always should have been” rather than some unattainable dreamscape of do-gooding. Creating something from scratch like STEP is never easy, but to my mind, doing anything less misses a golden opportunity to validate our place at the sustainability table as we face an energy future where efficiency looks to be the easiest get while we wait for some breakthrough technology to rewrite the rules for how we design and build our homes and buildings. Scott Walker, CTS-D, LEED® AP, is president and CEO of Waveguide Consulting, a national AV, IT and acoustical consulting firm. Scott is a past president of InfoComm International, and he currently chairs InfoComm’s AV Sustainability Task Force, which is responsible for developing the Sustainable Technology Environments Program (STEPSM) rating system. Scott can be reached at swalker@waveguide.com Leave a Comment Share Article |
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Simply Green By Midori Connolly We have spent the last handful of columns looking at the broad picture of sustainability. Step by step, we’ve reviewed strategic methodology to implement a program within an organization. But, now it’s time to drill it down. Last year I spent an hour or so doing a brief analysis of a staging company’s billing process. Frustrated with receiving two paper copies of each invoice (of which there were multiple iterations) over the course of one event, I made some ultra simplified calculations and estimated their annual costs to be anywhere from US$600-$2000 annually. This was based on the labor, materials and shipping costs. Now, take a look at this picture (to the right). What is wrong here? Well, this seemingly innocuous little set up is actually an environmental disaster and potentially tens of thousands of dollars to a large shipping company. We ordered a replacement display window for one of our microphones, a tiny acrylic piece, about .5”x.5” and weighing (at most) an ounce or so. As you can see, the piece arrived in a large box, triple wrapped in poly foam, then enclosed in a plastic zipper bag, with at least one foot of air pillows rounding out the packaging materials. Curious, I tested the durability of the acrylic window. It was almost impossible to crush. Wrapped in a handful of poly foam, it was flexible enough to withstand dropping a large book on it! So, could this be another source of savings? Cutting back on shipping materials? And possibly a major source of improving environmental impact? These numbers and analysis might seem simplistic from me, an outsider. I acknowledge that there are probably a hundred excuses for why both of these organizations execute just so. But, isn’t this exactly how innovation occurs? By asking how processes might be improved? Where we start breaking the boundaries of what we’ve always done and think of improvement. Just ask the Aberdeen Best-in-Class, the top 20 percent performers of 6,000 organizations worldwide. A full 52 percent of these organizations have a long-term focus on sustainability (of which innovation is a defining characteristic). This is how cost efficiencies are achieved and industry leadership is attained… it’s simply green, and it simply makes sense. Midori Connolly is CEO and Chief AVGirl of Pulse Staging & Events, Inc. in Escondido, California. She wrote the first-ever set of Sustainable Staging guidelines after discovering none existed. She is the vice-chair of the AV committee for the U.S. EPA’s Green Meetings Standards and regularly speaks and writes about corporate social responsibility and green practices in live events and meeting planning. Reach her at midori@pulsestaging.com Leave a Comment Share Article Eragy Launches 2nd Generation Energy Monitoring System Eragy’s home energy monitoring is designed to allow consumers to closely monitor their power consumption via an HDTV, a touch panel, smart phone, iPad or PC. This is an interesting solution for HomeAV integrators as we know that consumers typically reduce power consumption by 15 percent when they simply know what their energy consumption is. In conjunction with an easy-to-install energy sensor, the Eragy system monitors energy consumption 24/7 and communicates this information via a Web browser or App. In addition, using the client’s energy use patterns, they provide them with a host of information on your energy consumption and projected energy costs and where to easily cut and when. The company’s 2nd Generation Energy Management Solution includes the ability to support 48 monitoring sensors connected to the system, 3-phase energy monitoring (even small businesses can use this system), support for solar, wind, gas and standard electrical energy monitoring and support for multiple monitoring systems (e.g., 2nd home, guest house, business) on the same platform. Want more details? Go here: http://www.eragy.com/products/for-consumers/ Leave a Comment Share Article Sharp Wins 2010 Energy Star’s Award for Excellence in Energy Efficiency Sharp Electronics has been selected to receive a 2011 Excellence in Energy Efficient Product Design Award from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s (EPA) Energy Star program. This award is being given to Sharp for its “ongoing commitment to promoting energy-efficiency amongst the consumer electronics and business products’ trade and consumers, as well as the company’s efforts to lead by example in the execution of its business operations.” Each year, the U.S. EPA and the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) honor organizations that have made outstanding contributions to protecting the environment through supporting and promoting energy-efficiency. Sharp will receive this award at a ceremony in Washington, D.C. on April 12, 2011. Leave a Comment Share Article EPA Announces New Energy Star Requirements for Televisions and Cable/Satellite Boxes The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is announcing the completion of updates to the Energy Star requirements for televisions and cable and satellite boxes. Effective in September 2011, these products must be 40 percent more efficient than conventional models in order to qualify for the Energy Star label. The updates are the first of more than 20 revisions to product requirements the Energy Star program is expected to complete this year. The new television requirements reflect an acceleration of pending changes made possible by a rapid market response to the current Energy Star requirements. Sustained consumer demand and strong retailer support for the program could lead to sales of the current Energy Star qualified televisions representing as much as 70 percent of the market this year. With more than 19 million large screen (greater than 40 inches) televisions expected to ship this year, this means substantial overall energy bill savings and carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions reductions. For example, under the new requirements, a 60-inch television must use less than 108 watts, compared to the average 282 watts used by a standard model that size. The new Energy Star requirements for cable and satellite boxes specify that they enter a deep sleep mode while not in use, dropping their energy consumption from about 16 watts to 2 watts or less. The new requirements also encourage the deployment of multi-room “thin client” devices to transmit programming from one central DVR to other televisions in the home. In order to earn the Energy Star label under these new requirements, product performance must be certified by an EPA-recognized third-party based on testing in an EPA-recognized lab. In addition, manufacturers of the products must participate in verification testing programs run by recognized Certification Bodies. If all televisions, cable and satellite boxes in the U.S. were to meet the new Energy Star requirements, consumer energy cost savings would grow to more than $5 billion each year and reduce annual greenhouse gas emissions equal to those of more than 7 million cars. For complete specs, go here: http://www.energystar.gov/index.cfm?c=revisions.television_spec Leave a Comment Share Article Lutron Wins Gold, HAI Wins Platinum Level Green Award from CEA This month the Consumer Electronics Association (CEA) handed out its Green Product of the Year Awards for consumer electronics and the winners included Lutron and Home Automation Inc (HAI). CEA told rAVe that the Mark of Excellence Awards “recognizes products and companies in the forefront of innovation in the home technologies industry.” HAI took home the Platinum award for its Omnistat2 with Zigbee Wireless IHD control and Lutron was given Gold for its Diva CL Dimmer that dims everything including halogens, incandescents, dimmable CFLs and LEDs. For details on the HAI product, go here: http://www.homeauto.com/main.asp And for details on Lutron, go here: http://www.lutron.com/Pages/Default.aspx Leave a Comment Share Article Middle Atlantic Debuts Green UPS with Individual Outlet Control Middle Atlantic Products is introducing a new line of UPS systems that provide true individual outlet control, both remotely via RS-232 and IP, and locally using Middle Atlantic Power Manager, a web-based interface for local monitoring and control. Calling it the first UPS with 100 percent individual outlet control in the ProAV and HomeAV markets, Middle Atlantic says this system allows users to control each of the eight outlets independently, unlike other systems that only support control of outlet groups. This capability allows users to restrict unauthorized use of outlets for additional security, and when integrated with a control system via RS-232, can support up to eight-stage sequencing in any combination, with any delay; no separate sequencer is necessary. Complete specs are here: http://www.middleatlantic.com/ Leave a Comment Share Article Panamax/Furman and LiteTouch Combine Operations Power management company Panamax/Furman this month announced that the company will be combining LiteTouch, a manufacturer of lighting control products, with its operations. Both companies are subsidiaries of the Home Technology Group of Linear, LLC. To read the complete press release online, click here. Leave a Comment Share Article Extron Debuts Fiber Optic Cables, Connectors, and Tools Extron added pre-terminated and bulk fiber optic cables, cable termination tools, field-installable connectors, and test equipment to complete its line of fiber products. Combined with the existing line of extenders, matrix switchers and distribution amplifiers, these new products give Extron what they are calling the most comprehensive line of fiber optic products in the industry and enable transmission of video, audio, and control over extreme distances. Bend-insensitive, plenum-rated bulk cable and factory-terminated cable assemblies in various lengths are available in both OM4 multi-mode and single-mode versions. For bulk cable, the Fiber Optic Termination Kit and Quick LC fiber optic connectors enable fast and reliable termination in the field. To ensure system-wide reliability, use the FPM 101 fiber optic power meter in conjunction with either the FLS 850 Fiber Optic Light Source for multi-mode cabling or the FLS 1310 Fiber Optic Light Source for single-mode solutions to measure optical power and loss throughout the fiber optic infrastructure. These new accessory items round out and complement the extensive line of fiber optic products from Extron, which includes switchers, matrix switchers, signal processors, extenders, and distribution amplifiers. These new accessory products incorporate many features that specifically address challenges often encountered in AV environments. Check it all out here: http://www.extron.com/company/article.aspx?id=focctpr Leave a Comment Share Article Well, that’s it for this edition of rAVe GreenAV Edition! Thank you for spending time with us as we muse the industry’s happenings. To continue getting my newsletter, or to sign up a friend, click the link below. To send feedback, don’t reply to this newsletter – instead, write to Publisher Gary Kayye at gary@ravepubs.com or Editor-in-Chief Sara Abrons at sara@ravepubs.com A little about Gary Kayye, CTS, founder of rAVe and Kayye Consulting. Gary Kayye, an audiovisual veteran and columnist, began the widely-read KNews, a premier industry newsletter, in the late 1990s, and created the model for and was co-founder of AV Avenue – which later became InfoComm IQ. Kayye Consulting is a company that is committed to furthering the interests and success of dealers, manufacturers, and other companies within the professional audiovisual industry. rAVe Pro Edition launched in February 2003. rAVe Home Edition, co-sponsored by CEDIA, launched in February 2004. rAVe Rental [and Staging] launched in November 2007. rAVe Ed [Education] began publication in May 2008. rAVe DS [Digital Signage] launched in January 2009. This publication, rAVe GreenAV, was launched in August 2010. Subscribe to our newsletters! https://www.ravepubs.com To read more about my background, our staff, and what we do, go to https://www.ravepubs.com Copyright 2011 – rAVe [Publications] – All rights reserved – All rights reserved. For reprint policies, contact rAVe [Publications], 210 Old Barn Ln. – Chapel Hill, NC 27517 – (919) 969-7501. Email: sara@ravepubs.com rAVe GreenAV contains the opinions of the author only and does not necessarily reflect the opinions of other persons or companies or its sponsors.