Lab Evaluation of Integrated Controls for Commercial Buildings

The "Laboratory Evaluation of a Commercial, Whole-Building, Integrated Control System" aimed to quantify energy savings from integrating building subsystems, such as lighting, HVAC, shading, and plug loads, under a centralized Building Automation System (BAS). Seven integrated control strategies were tested in a two-story building at UC Davis over a year to evaluate energy efficiency, demand flexibility, and occupant comfort. Results showed significant energy savings, with whole-building integration achieving a 35.1% reduction in annual energy consumption, demonstrating the benefits of cross-system coordination. The research highlighted that integrating multiple building systems enhanced energy performance compared to isolated system operations. The lighting and HVAC integration yielded 15.9% savings by employing occupancy-based adjustments, while a shading and lighting strategy achieved a 5.4% reduction. HVAC precooling resulted in an 8.7% reduction in energy consumption, and the comprehensive whole-building integration provided the greatest overall impact, demonstrating effective load shifting and significant savings. Despite technical feasibility, plug load control and hot water integration provided minimal savings due to the limited demand in the test environment. Occupant feedback was mixed, appreciating features like automated shading but expressing concerns about system responsiveness. Overall, the findings strongly indicate that comprehensive system integration can significantly improve energy efficiency, demand flexibility, and occupant comfort, making it a highly effective and scalable approach for reducing energy consumption in commercial settings.