Technical Update August 2019
2019 has been the first year where modern electronic HIUs with remote real-time connectivity have been used in any numbers in the field, and the data these systems is providing has taught us a lot. Previously, the only systems that existed for remote data were based on a master/slave setup, such as heat meters, which can provide live data, but not very often, and it is impossible to record data from more than one devise simultaneously, and we have had to live with readings ranging from once per minute to once her day. It may be live data, but hardly real-time and it is impossible to analyse events that last only seconds, such as a hot tap running.
The latest generation of HIU networks instead provide parallel real-time data, where devices are in control of when data is sent, when something interesting is happening. Furthermore this data can be as fine as one second intervals, allowing events such as a tap use to be analysed in detail. For the first time ever we can see exactly what is (or has) going on in every event.
For many applications there is no need for such a level of detail. If all we want to know is how well a system is performing, then occassional reads of heat meter data will give us a good idea, as some readings will coincide with events and we can determine return temperature performance for example. This is interesting t a client, as it tells them there is a problem to be looked into. They still need to then arrance access for an engineer to determine the precise cause of the problem, and then to fix it.
By contrast a real-time system would be looking at every single event and working out where there is a problem, and why. All the pressures, temperatures, flow rates, and valve positions are known (rather tham implied) and ths enables an engineer (or the system software) to work out the cause of the problem and even the appropriate corrective action, which may be as simple as a change in settings such as a the central heating return limit.
The benefits of this are now no longer theoretical but a practical reality. The biggest change we have noticed on the front line of preparing for hand-over day is that we can now guarantee everything is working perfectly before hand over, and continues to post hand-over. Previously we relied on factory setup, commissioning engineers doing their part diligently, and that nobody else plays with anything important. With proper organisation and training this works, but it does take significant effort to find and solve everyone's problems (what we call a decent level of customer support). Nowdays, we can bring up a screen to confrm everything is perfect, we can generate reports to prove this is the case, and changing settings is a task that takes seconds without moving from one's office chair. If something goes needs looking at we get an email, and if their is an urgent problem engineers get a text message.
And its not just HIUs where we are applying this level of control and monitoring to, but the entire heat network, including sub-station and plant-rooms. The system we developed for HIUs is based on open protocols and can be easily replicated without licences. It is also more powerful than the existing BMS systems used to control and monitor plant-rooms, and has proved itself rather capable in the field. Now, the same open systems that provide 'exception reporting' on HIU networks can cover the entire network end-to-end, and we can finally implement the more advanced functions such as load shifting or shedding.
