Effective control of heating, ventilation, air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR) infrastructure can help you achieve your sustainability, compliance and operational aims.
An efficient method of managing these vital HVACR controls is by uniting them together within one Building Management System (BMS). Here, one front-end connects all of the individual devices, acting as the central monitoring point of the system. Different front-end devices, or gateways, offer varying functions and features. It is important to select the right front-end system for your bespoke requirements.
What to Look for in your Control System Front-end
Open Communication
By incorporating open protocols, front-end devices gain the ability to access and share operational data, even between existing third-party controls. This supports the customer store format, which may use equipment from a variety of suppliers.
Efficient User-experience
A front-end device should ideally be able to digest big data into manageable chunks and present this information in an easy-to-read, visually stimulating format. This enables quicker, more accurate decisions to be made by management as they have real-time, relevant data at their fingertips.
Flexible Remote Access
Multi-site management is a key feature and enables managers to oversee and control their site at a time and place that is convenient for them. With increased flexibility, this drastically reduces the manual labour requirement while offering complete visibility of operations.
Energy Saving Features
The UK Government has committed to reducing carbon emissions by at least 80% of 1990 levels by 2050. This requires an eco-friendly mindset to be adopted by organisations across the country, who must now minimise their energy consumption by maximising the efficiency of their controls and processes. A number of front-ends seek to address this challenge through their ability to link, control and monitor different building disciplines.
Opportunities for Expansion
As companies' control requirements develop, often they are required to invest in new hardware, should their current system no longer be able to support their changing needs. However, dependent on the supplier, accessories may be available which can build on the current device and seek to resolve any bespoke security, connectivity and/or functionality requirements. This flexibility prevents the need for regular and expensive replacing of equipment.
Trusted Support
A control system which promises an abundance of features and functions but whose supplier cannot be contacted for technical support queries should be avoided. Instead, a highly knowledgeable and responsive support team should be sought to ensure streamlined implementation and management. Furthermore, with an effective front-end device having features lead by customer demand, communication between supplier and customer is key for future development.
RDM DMTouch: Future-proof Front End Control and Monitoring Solution
Resource Data Management’s DMTouch provides the ultimate gateway to interface with a number of standard and proprietary HVACR and BMS devices.
Unlike many competing products, our DMTouch, after appropriate activation, is designed to communicate with a number of different open and third-party networking protocols. This allows our customers to integrate our controls with existing equipment on their site.
Our control system front-end also features a high-definition, multi-touch display, where information is presented in an easily-digested, visually-stimulating format. Our TouchXL can also operate as an additional user interface and alarm console, where all of the menus, options and selection screens that are available on the DMTouch are available on this extra display. However, this isn’t our only additional option. If you’re looking to build on the solution, RDM also offers a number of DMTouch accessories, including magnetic swipe-card card readers, alarm beacons, I/O expansion cards amongst others.
What’s more, the DMTouch comes with a host of energy-saving features built-in and available with activation. Alongside energy and optimisation features, the device can be configured to monitor metered consumables like water, gas, and electricity. This enables it to provide consumption statistics, predict budgets, provide warnings and display trends.
Sound too Good to be True?
We are so confident that our DMTouch will mirror our high praise that it is backed by our industry-leading five-year warranty. Should anything go wrong or should there be any queries, we also have our incredibly knowledgeable technical support team. Contactable by email, phone and/or live chat, they are ready to help in our various office locations worldwide.
DMTouch: The Ultimate Gateway to your HVACR and BMS Applications
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