Priva Blue ID upgrades controls in Grade 2 listed building
The upgrading of the heating-control system at the St Bueno’s Jesuit Spirituality Centre in North Wales is based on Priva’s Blue ID system. It replaces a poorly designed PLC-based system to improve the accuracy of heating control across the site and enhance accessibility with a user-friendly touchscreen.
This large 19th-century building is Grade 2 listed. It has high ceilings, large corridors and many single-glazed and stained-glass windows.
The centre was disillusioned with the PLC-based system and appointed Wren Electrical Services, via main contractor Clovermead Construction, to devise a better solution.
Ben Johnson, engineering director with Wren Electrical Services, explains, ‘The existing building-management system consisted of a PLC that was not fit for purpose, a number of separate time clocks for the pumps and a separate temperature control for three oil-fired boilers.
‘The inadequate design of the system made it almost impossible to obtain correct and energy-efficient control of the heating system throughout the building.
‘In addition, there was no user interface for staff on site to change times, set points or view alarm history, while the BMS panel was not up to current electrical regulations.’
He continues, ‘Our solution was to start from scratch to design, build and install a new control panel with a new BMS.
The panel has a user-friendly touchscreen from which heating times and set points can be changed. It also shows fault history, temperatures throughout the plant and which equipment is running.
The plant rooms’ new electrical control panel was designed to suit all existing plant and equipment and made and installed to BS 7671. The use of Priva ID eliminated the need for separate time and temperature controllers as previously installed. The BEMS strategy was completely rewritten to suit the purpose.
