Applications of PTS Data
The general applications UC Davis has found for PTS data are summarized below. The following sections provide more detail and examples of each application. If you think of another way to use the data, please let us know and we will add it to the list.
Improve Operations
Analyze long-term feedback trends to detect a need for equipment calibration, air supply vent adjustments, and possible changes toward energy efficient setpoints and schedules.
Prioritize Projects
Track feedback to prioritize building and occupant comfort needs for future retrofit projects. Feedback can also be used to provide data to support newly proposed projects.
Evaluate EE Initiatives
Change HVAC operations to improve energy efficiency (EE), and promoting PTS to occupants as a way to monitor and assess the impact of the HVAC change on their comfort.
Automate Controls
Use TherMOOstat data to make real-time adjustments to an HVAC controls system. Algorithms determine if adjustments are needed to optimize comfort and energy.
Refer to the following buttons below to learn more about each of the categories identified above and find examples of what's been successful at UC Davis.
Comfort and Efficiency
A PTS system can yield data to both improve comfort and find opportunities to increase energy efficiency. PTS data provides a dataset previously unrealized for a university campus, and can be used to gain insight from the campus community on how they feel about their spaces.
Looking at Long-Term Trends
Analyzing long-term trends in PTS data reveals opportunities to improve campus comfort and efficiency--sometimes simultaneously! One initiative that has come out of PTS data at UCD is the “Campus Comfort Band,” a new set of temperature guidelines.
PTS data from classroom buildings has consistently shown that occupants are too cold on very hot days. Specifically, occupants report the room is too cold when the outside temperature gets over 95°F and the room is below 75°F.
Changing the Setpoints
This raised a red flag for energy waste from overcooling indoor spaces! In response, the Campus Comfort Band was developed for classrooms, with a range of indoor setpoints fluctuating throughout the day based on the outdoor temperature.
Classrooms setpoints are now set between 71°F - 76°F when it's warmer outside, and between 69°F - 74°F when it's cooler outside.
At cooler outside temperatures:
Indoor Comfort Band: 69°F – 74°F
At warmer outside temperatures:
Indoor Comfort Band: 71°F – 76°F
Prioritizing Energy Projects
All UC campuses likely have a long list of projects needed to improve building performance, many of which require major capital investment. PTS data can be used to help prioritize these needs for long-term planning of retrofits.
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An Example from UC DavisJohn Coon is a project manager in the office who performs triage and short-term analysis on PTS data. He spends roughly 15% of his time on TherMOOstat related work. In real-time, he fields PTS submissions and checks against the HVAC controls system for broken or malfunctioning equipment. At the end of th week, he spends 1-2 hours a reviewing feedback and trending data as needed. John's well-suited for this role because he has 20 years of experience with campus buildings, and is well acquainted with their comfort issues as well as what is "normal" for a particular building.
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The Role of Building Maintenance ServicesAt UC Davis, the Building Maintanance Services (BMS) group is a sister to the Energy & Engineering group (which is the home of TherMOOstat). In other words, we are two of the several branches within the Facilities Management Department. The HVAC technicians in the BMS group aren't involved in the triage of PTS data. This choice was strategic because the HVAC technicians have their work orders to handle, and that is their main focus. To insure the PTS data doesn't add to their workload, John investigates PTS data in the HVSC controls system and only 1 issue every 2-3 weeks is passed on to the HVAC technicians (who are responding to at least a dozen work orders in any given week).
Evaluating Energy Projects
PTS data enables more proactive energy efficiency projects because it provides a communication channel with building occupants to ensure projects do not adversely affect them. At UC Davis, we use TherMOOstat to check in before, during, and/or after an energy efficiency initiative.
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An Example from UC DavisJohn Coon is a project manager in the office who performs triage and short-term analysis on PTS data. He spends roughly 15% of his time on TherMOOstat related work. In real-time, he fields PTS submissions and checks against the HVAC controls system for broken or malfunctioning equipment. At the end of th week, he spends 1-2 hours a reviewing feedback and trending data as needed. John's well-suited for this role because he has 20 years of experience with campus buildings, and is well acquainted with their comfort issues as well as what is "normal" for a particular building.
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The Role of Building Maintenance ServicesAt UC Davis, the Building Maintanance Services (BMS) group is a sister to the Energy & Engineering group (which is the home of TherMOOstat). In other words, we are two of the several branches within the Facilities Management Department. The HVAC technicians in the BMS group aren't involved in the triage of PTS data. This choice was strategic because the HVAC technicians have their work orders to handle, and that is their main focus. To insure the PTS data doesn't add to their workload, John investigates PTS data in the HVSC controls system and only 1 issue every 2-3 weeks is passed on to the HVAC technicians (who are responding to at least a dozen work orders in any given week).
Perks of Automating the Feedback Loop
There are opportunities to streamline parts of the PTS data triage process and give occupants even more control by integrating PTS with the BAS.
Steps in the Feedback Loop
Algorithms can be programmed to automatically adjust setpoints based on incoming comfort data. This is a huge undertaking. UC Merced researchers experimented with this with their program, Thermovote. We’ve also experimented with it in our Energy Conservation Office building. These experiments have so far been limited to single buildings because of the complications of working with different types of building automation systems and equipment. Another example of automating the feedback loop is by enabling control of large fans. UCD has done this and recommends the following process.
1.
Scope out rooms to target by reviewing comfort votes. Good candidates include rooms with PTS comments that indicate stuffiness or airflow issues.
2.
Determine the size and location of a fan based on what will work for the chosen room, e.g., 3 residential sized fans versus one 8’ commercial fan.
3.
Obtain approvals for the fan (this is likely to be different for each campus).
4.
Scope necessary hardware to connect PTS to the speed of the ceiling fan. At UC Davis we use raspberry pi and labjack hardware.
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Coordinate fan install with Facilities and necessary coding to connect PTS to the fan with computer science students.
UCD Example of Automated PTS Fan Control
In a classroom on the UC Davis campus, the Facilities Department installed two 8 foot high-volume, low-speed ceiling fans. These fans operate on a range of 0-10 volts, determined by TherMOOstat votes. This is our first pilot to improve comfort and save energy, and automate the feedback loop.
With the help of two computer science interns, and a graduate student researcher, we have connected TherMOOstat votes to control the speed of the ceiling fans in real time. Since the installation of the ceiling fans, engagement with TherMOOstat has grown from 2-5 votes per month to as many as 70 votes/month.
Fan Control Algorithm
Here you can see a simplified version of the algorithm we’ve used to control the fan.
If there are no TherMOOstat votes, the fan speed is at default, determined by outside air temperature. Hot votes increase the speed of the fan, while cold votes decrease the speed of the fan (the fan does not reverse direction). If hot and cold votes are received simultaneously, our algorithm determines how this will affect the speed of the fan.
In November 2013, President Janet Napolitano announced the Carbon Neutrality Initiative, which commits UC to emitting net zero greenhouse gases from its buildings and vehicle fleet by 2025, something no other major university system has done.
Created by Facilities Energy & Engineering at UC Davis
Get in touch with the team by contacting Kiernan Salmon at kmsalmon@ucdavis.edu
See our guides to Campus Comfort, as well as TherMOOstat Success Stories on Campus Comfort 101 site.