Managing the Selfridges building
The Selfridges store in London’s Oxford Street has been a world-famous landmark for over a hundred years. Its founder Harry Gordon Selfridge was a man with a faith in technology and a conviction that the future of retailing was dependent on a comfortable and welcoming customer environment.
Selfridges’ vision of retailing is reflected in the building’s arresting and interesting window displays, encouraging customers to choose from a wide selection of high-quality items in airy and well lighted conditions.
Designed by American architect Daniel Burnham, this eye-catching Edwardian building used a revolutionary steel-frame system to support the main structure. The grandeur of the building was emphasised by stone facing, large windows and massive 3-storey columns surmounted by ionic capitals.
Large retail buildings represent some of the most demanding spaces for heating, ventilating and air-conditioning systems to accommodate constant changes in floor arrangements and occupancy movement.
Enterprise building management systems (BMSs) have the highest level of integration where building automation performance and flexibility directly interface with the business operation.
CentraLine Partner Smith & Byford has been working very closely with Selfridges’ engineering team to update and refurbish the building-management system in the Oxford Street store.
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| Site-wide front-end supervision was implemented using CentraLine Arena AX and 3D graphics to enhance the user/operator experience by providing a more realistic and engaging interface. |
Nick Carter, Smith & Byford contracts manager, explains, ‘Selfridges is very conscious of the importance of a building management system engineered to suit its present requirements but also with the flexibility to keep pace with future developments.’
Working with Selfridges the Smith & Byford team carried out an in-depth survey with two major objectives.
• Identify excessive energy usage and areas where updating existing building controls would help improve Selfridges’ business efficiency through reduced running costs — for example unnecessary lighting 24 hours a day, seven days a week.
• Establish a complete overview of the building to identify areas of weakness and potential failures in the existing building automation with a view to future replacement or refurbishment.’
Nick Carter continues, ‘Liaising with our client Selfridges has been a key part of understanding existing issues and its future vision of energy-management systems — the primary consideration being its interaction with the store’s customers and the retail operation.
‘Selfridges is very keen to use proven technology to ensure its stores are run at the highest efficiency without any loss of customer comfort.
‘Smith & Byford and Selfridges have developed an iPad application for monitoring and controlling of lighting.
‘Remote and onsite access to zone and time control of floor lighting will allow optimisation of space illumination and display whilst minimising energy usage.’
Integration and flexibility are critical to enterprise building management systems, where new products and sub-systems are introduced on a regular basis.
Smith & Byford has ongoing projects with Selfridges to update the control and monitoring of HVAC plant and interface with packaged units using the Hawk AX integration controller.
Site-wide front-end supervision was implemented using CentraLine Arena AX and 3D graphics to enhance the user/operator experience by providing a more realistic and engaging interface.
A service contract has been awarded to Smith & Byford to maintain the BMS. The contract includes in-house training to ensure the systems installed are operated at their maximum and optimal efficiency in a demanding retail environment.
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| Air conditioning for the Selfridges store is based on five large chillers. |
Steve Houssart, Selfridges senior engineering manager, said, ‘Working with the Smith & Byford team on the Selfridges project, clearly demonstrates their ability for flexible thinking and delivery. the “old girl” is 109 years old” and needs a sympathetic as well as a unique approach to BMS installation.’
Eustace, Smith & Byford’s business development manager, added, ‘Selfridges is a great opportunity for Smith & Byford to understand and support a world-class retail establishment in applying the latest technology to reduce energy costs by improved monitoring and control.
Selfridges really appreciates the importance of access to building services through the use of remote Smart devices and user friendly graphical displays. The iPad application to provide zone control of lighting is a great example of practical energy management being available to ensure minimised cost without loss of enterprise effectiveness.
‘We are looking forward to potential projects with Selfridges that may include existing BMS refurbishment or interfacing with existing building management systems using the CentraLine Hawk AX.
‘Metering will be a very important part of any future projects. Automatic targeting and monitoring (ATM) is an essential part of energy management, particularly in buildings with a business operation that requires a high degree of zoning and control.’
Roger Coote, CentraLine by Honeywell senior account manager, summarises, ‘Smith and Byford is one of our most established CentraLine Partners and has been applying and engineering Niagara-based Hawk AX integration controllers from their introduction.
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| Environmental conditions throughout the Selfridges store can be monitored from floor-plan displays |
‘Selfridges is one of our highest profile end users and we are very pleased to see a Partner–client relationship developing energy-management solutions to match business specific requirements.
‘I am very much looking forward to supporting Smith & Byford with all existing and future projects with Selfridges, which I am sure will be both successful and innovative.’
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