EES Blog

Technology refresh is nothing new in the IT (Information Technology) world. In the OT (Operations Technology) world, it is not new either: it just doesn’t happen as often.

Assumptions play a lot in communications: If I try to say “Equality is good”, nobody really knows what I am talking about. For Equality, some people color this with “Equality of Outcome”, and some people color this with “Equality of Opportunity”: Race, gender, politics, justice, law, etc. are assumptions put into play just by invoking “Equality”. For “good”, some people will assume I am talking about the environment, some about personal well-being, those of my group, or just in general. Some may take good to mean “better than currently exists” or “the best possible”. Even the quality “good” is subjective: “Good” may mean to one person a lot of money, others the freedom to be their own boss, and still more just an adequate sleeping place and food. If I want anybody to understand whatever I meant by saying “Equality is good”, I have to reduce the assumptions dramatically so that everybody knows my thought or intent clearly. Without clarity, you can waste a lot of time, effort, and material going down the wrong path.

EES employees like to play as hard as we work! A couple of us wanted to experience life in the fast lane, so we took a trip to Dover motor Speedway for a Nascar experience.

Schedules are at the very heart of most modern Building Management Systems (BMS). They tell when a particular tenant space or common space is to be “on” or “off”.   Clearly, tailoring the “on” time to match as closely as possible the actual occupancy is the way to shave off waste.

The EES team truly embraced the holiday spirit with enthusiasm and festive cheer. Our holiday celebration was nothing short of spectacular, filled with delectable dishes, drinks, and heartwarming moments with family. After the speeches were done and the group photo was taken, we shared champagne and cake to welcome our new team members.  

The banquet featured succulent turkey and the prime rib took center stage, complemented by an array of sides and extras that catered to all tastes and preferences. The culinary team went above and beyond to ensure that every dish was a masterpiece, making the evening even more memorable.

Engineered Energy Solutions (EES) merges operations with Integrated Control Solutions (ICS) to drive excellence and client support in the design, engineering and installation of energy efficient automation and control systems for the commercial building and transportation sectors.

Save on energy resources by utilizing a heat-recovery chiller or DX compressors

Running an air handler in “dehumidification” mode tends to be a resource hog. First, you are using a lot of chilled water to *squeeze* the ever-living-moisture out of the air, then you have to reheat it to make the air temperature comfortable. A double expenditure of energy: cooling and heating.

Utilizing air-side economizers during the cooler seasons can significantly reduce chilled water costs by leveraging outside air for cooling, offering substantial energy savings for businesses in temperate climates.

As we slip into fall, our thoughts turn to pumpkin spice.  Our air-side economizers – a duct and damper arrangement with a control system that enables the heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system – however, think about saving chilled water costs.  If we can lower load for the chiller, we can save money due to less energy being used. If the outside air is cool and dry enough, we can open an economizer and let nature do the job instead of using the chilled water coil.  It also usually has the benefit of changing the air more quickly than during the winter or summer seasons.  

Less chilled water pumping also lowers the energy needed to move the water around. We control the differential pressure of the chilled water by slowing down the chilled water pump via a variable frequency drive (VFD), and less load raises the differential pressure.  The tower also must do less work because there is less heat rejected out to it, so the fans run slower.  This saves tower make-up water as well: less evaporation, less water needed.

Different jobs require different types of disciplines.  Not just in the academic sense, but in the practical sense.   Ask any good musician how they got that way and they will tell you practice, patience and tenacity will get you where you want to be.  Similar traits that transfer over to the controls engineering world.  There is a reason that the back of EES' business card reads “experience, something you get right after you need it”.

On September 11, 2001, EES lost a good client. We had the control system on the central chilled water plant at the World Trade Center. EES was scheduled for service at the site that day, but was postponed due to a hang-up on the purchase order, fortunately our visit was re-scheduled, to never. We knew many of the operators, some of whom stayed at their posts when the building went down.