Have you considered upgrading a building automation system but aren't sure where to start? 

Do you struggle to explain why the "new" features of your building automation system are worth the cost to your customers? 

Are you trying to better understand how an upgrade could positively impact your business? 

If so this episode is for you. In this weeks episode of the Building Automation Monthly Podcast, we discuss the ins and outs of upgrading a BAS!

How do wireless networks work with building automation systems? 

If you've found yourself asking this question then you're not alone. 

Wireless technology seems to bring with it a lot of benefits but yet wireless technology still is seeing slow adoption rates. Why?

In this episode, we discuss the four most common wireless technologies used with a building automation system.

We will discuss the pros and cons of each technology along with when you would use each technology.

Wireless Technologies and Building Automation

• Why is wireless still not receiving the love it deserves? (0:45)
• Why Wi-Fi is the most common wireless technology (4:02)
• The benefit of using mesh networking with your BAS (13:12)
• How cellular connections deliver an always-on building network (17:20)
• The solution to monitoring distant devices  (19:24)

Are you struggling to make sense of IP controls? Do all the different options just seem to blend together? 

In this week’s episode of the Building Automation Monthly Podcast, we will be discussing the pros and cons of IP controls and the most common way of implementing IP controls. This episode will cover:

• The pros and cons of the three kinds of IP controls
• How IP controls are different than regular BAS controls and what you need to be aware of
• Special design considerations that should be factored into IP controls designs

Pros and Cons of IP Controls

• The history behind IP controls and why it matters (3:05)
• What the future of IP controls will be (4:02)
• The three BAS controller design patterns (6:05)
• Pattern 1: The Star Pattern (7:55)
• Pattern 2: The Daisy Chain | Bus Pattern  (13:07)
• The hidden danger of power dependencies (16:40)
• Why you want to limit the number of your IP controllers on a subnet (18:42)
• Pattern 3: The Ring Pattern (20:15)

Why is your building automation server not communicating with your supervisory devices?

It could be that your network is down or it could be something much simpler like the firewall being set up incorrectly...

In this week’s episode of the Building Automation Monthly Podcast, we will be discussing how logical links affect your building automation system's ability to communicate. This episode will cover:

• How logical ports work and why you use them
• Understanding how to talk to an IT person to succeed with a BAS project
• Why you need to learn how BAS networking works even if you are in a non-technical role.
• Examples of how the transport layer works with BAS networks

Ports and logical communication

• Why the changes in the industry require us to increase our IT maturity (0:35)
• The level of IT knowledge you really need to have (2:55)
• How you are in a better spot for learning IT then you know (4:22)
• How logical links work to keep your BAS communicating (6:55)
• Why reliable communication is not necessarily better than unreliable communication  (11:02)
• How the transport layer works with BACnet communications (15:00)
• How your BAS server utilizes TCP communications (17:25)

Have you ever had to explain yourself to IT?

It seemed like the IT folks, were blocking you at every turn.

Why do you need IP addresses? Why do you need to put your devices on our network? Why do your addresses need to be static? 

Every day these questions plague BAS professionals. One false move and the IT group will withdraw and block you from achieving your goals.

In this week’s episode of the Building Automation Monthly Podcast, we will be discussing how to deal with these exact issues. This episode will cover:

• What IP addressing is and why it matters to BAS professionals
• The common challenges you will get from IT professionals and how to overcome them
• What the three most common IP controls architectures are and when you should use each one
• Why the deep study of IT networking is actually hurting your BAS career and what to do instead

IP Addresses and IP BAS Controls

• A real-world IT issue faced by one of our students and how they resolved it (1:35)
• The importance of having IP knowledge (5:35)
• What exactly is the IP address and why does it matter? (6:52)
• How subnet ranges and IP addresses work together (9:55)
• The very important reason for understanding how to calculate IP addresses  (12:02)
• Two types of IP addresses and when to use each one (14:30)
• How to deal with IT folks who don't want to give you static IP addresses (16:00)
• How broadcasts and default gateways make BAS networks work (19:00)
• What are routers and how do they affect your BAS network traffic (21:04)
• The three major BAS IP controls architectures (26:05)