Across the globe, the way electricity is generated, distributed, and consumed is changing rapidly. Whether you design, build, operate or service office buildings, shopping centers, hospitals, data centers, or campuses, you’re facing new challenges and opportunities.
Four societal and structural drivers are creating a new energy paradigm, with power distribution as the backbone tying them together.
1. More decentralized. Energy generation is being increasingly decentralized. Solar has grown over 30 percent in 2015 and 2016, with a forecast capacity of 79 GW in 2017. Looking forward, solar energy and storage will account for 50% of new capacity by 2030.
Surveys have found 57% of consumers are considering an upgrade to a self-sufficient microgrid, with a 59% year-on-year increase in solar capacity within US commercial businesses in the US and 155 new on-site business projects in the UK during 2015.
2. More decarbonized. The drive toward reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions is growing stronger. In the United States, buildings account for almost 40% of national CO2 emissions, out-consuming both the industrial and transportation sectors.
Fortunately, energy consumers hold massive potential to reduce GHG emissions. Buildings represent one of the greatest areas of opportunity, with 82% of untapped energy efficiency still remaining.
Recognizing this, many governments have introduced policies to promote climate-friendly buildings. In fact, ‘green building’ certifications in the private sector have become a sought-after badge of performance. At the same time, renewable energies are becoming mainstream: cheaper and more efficient; as such, solar photovoltaic is transforming the face of buildings today.
3. More digitized. Digitization is beginning to touch every aspect of modern society. The way we live. The way we run our businesses. The way we manage our energy. Intelligent devices are offering bright opportunities for greater efficiency, control, and value.
Navigant Research notes the recent trend in owners and operators “transforming their facilities into intelligent buildings, and it’s all centered around the idea of digitization.”
4. More electric. Global electricity consumption will continue to grow at almost 2% a year, with demand lifted 70% by 2040.10 New codes will be put in place to make electricity safer. Decentralization, decarbonization, and digitalization will help us manage this demand much better while creating a better world for all of us and, most importantly, for our future generations.
Societal and structural drivers are creating a new energy paradigm, with power distribution as the backbone tying them together.
In the past, it was enough for low and medium voltage power distribution systems to have electrical components that work together to distribute power safely, reliably, and efficiently. But to tap into the full benefits of the new energy paradigm, we all need to take a quantum step in how power and facility performance is managed.
The goals are challenging. With more power-sensitive loads and less tolerance for downtime, smarter tools are needed to manage power reliability. Beyond simply squeezing out every watt of energy efficiency possible to optimize costs, organizations need to meet sustainability goals and comply with new standards, regulations, and codes.
Equally, if using onsite energy generation and storage, it’s important to know when it’s most economical to use them and how to truly optimize both production and consumption. Building systems need to keep running, but operations and maintenance costs have to be minimized.
And behind it all, the electrical infrastructure needs to keep people and property safe and be secure from cyberattacks. In addition, consulting engineers are looking for new digital architectures that help their clients meet increasingly challenging business objectives and standards compliance.
Building owners and facility managers know that having a superior electrical system infrastructure can help building assets achieve a superior return on investment.
For panel builders and contractors, it’s crucial that electrical components and systems are proven and simple to implement.
And, finally, while larger and mission-critical buildings will have more demanding needs for managing power reliability and safety, the often limited in-house resources of small and mid-size buildings means that simpler solutions for optimizing operational efficiencies are needed.
What’s needed to achieve these aggressive goals is a new, holistic approach to managing electrical power.
Though facility managers are well aware that building management systems (BMS) typically include automation capabilities, many may be less aware of the recent advances in power distribution system technology.
Business can now meet these challenges by embracing the latest advances in digitization. Power networks now include greater levels of embedded intelligence, enabling greater levels of understanding and control.
All of the important energy assets and systems across an enterprise are connected in a highly integrated and scalable way to help facility and services teams quickly reveal and respond to risk and opportunity. And new analytic applications give you the tools to accelerate and simplify decision-making. Together, these innovations are unifying all aspects of power and energy management into a single, secure platform, accessible anywhere, anytime, by those that need it. It helps your facility teams and service partners to streamline workflows, predict maintenance needs, and boost building performance.
It also enables a range of enhanced life-cycle services that can extract even greater savings and value from a building’s infrastructure and energy contracts while making your job easier.
