An HVAC system is like the backbone of your building and plugs into each department, floor, and individual room. It’s a building’s HVAC systems that make sure its occupants are comfortable in the space they’re in.
Even though “HVAC systems have become the required industry standard for construction of new buildings,” these systems are not flawless. Like any other piece of technology or equipment, your building’s HVAC system will eventually encounter some issue or problem that must be resolved before it can return to its standard operating procedure.
If you’re managing multiple HVAC systems in numerous buildings, then fixing these problems can be a real chore. With so many occupants, employees, systems, tools, and obstacles to keep track of, sometimes you need a helping hand in order to keep it all straight. That’s where HVAC control systems and automation systems like ODIN can help.
With ODIN (Operator Display Integrated Network) on your side, you can easily control any of your facilities’ HVAC systems from any device, anywhere, and at any time. If you're one of the many HVAC managers who are responsible for managing various buildings, and all of their associated systems, then ODIN’s unique features are here for you.
Here’s a comprehensive breakdown of all the ways ODIN’s cloud-based and BACapp-powered software can help simplify the ways you manage multiple buildings’ HVAC systems.
Table of Contents:
Control Your Building Remotely
Conclusion: Connecting with ODIN
Control Your Building Remotely
It may not be possible to physically bring every building you manage with you wherever you go, but with an HVAC automation and control system like ODIN, you can do the next best thing. With the remote management capabilities that ODIN and other BAS’ provide, you will have consistently easy access to all of the data and commands you’ll need to better control your building’s day-to-day operation.
And thanks to ODIN’s universal accessibility and portability, you can effectively manage any building under your care from anywhere in the world. For example, if you’re at home—or on a plane, or the other side of the country—and receive notice that your building’s HVAC system is needlessly heating a conference room, you can use ODIN to resolve the issue immediately.
Even if the source of the HVAC problem is something more dramatic, you don’t have to worry. With ODIN at your side, you can quickly alert your technicians and HVAC engineers to the dilemma and provide them with all of the data they’ll need to quickly define and remove the problem on-site.
This way, even when you’re off-site, you can still direct your employees, supervise repairs, and help track down the cause of any and every problem your building’s HVAC system encounters. Any commands you give your HVAC system via ODIN will be immediately implemented, meaning you’ll always have your finger on the pulse of your building’s operation.
Not only does this provide you with peace of mind when you’re off-site, but it will also save you money. According to Energy Central, “continuous monitoring of HVAC assets and systems saves time for building engineers because they can remotely monitor equipment operation from their mobile devices while off-site.”
With the ability to monitor and direct a building’s HVAC capabilities remotely, productivity will no longer depend solely on a building manager’s ability to spend time on-site. Instead, they’ll be free to address more pressing issues, wherever they are, all while staying informed and involved in the day-to-day operation of their buildings.
How it Works
Here at ODIN, we recognize that the primary goals of any building owner or operator are to maintain their building’s continued operation, provide comfort to its occupants, and maximize energy costs. To do this, they need an operating system that can monitor their building’s HVAC systems and work alongside them to ensure that it’s doing the job it’s supposed to.
That’s why ODIN is designed to provide its users with an integrated interface that presents complex and technical HVAC system data in an easy-to-read and manage format. An automation system should streamline a building’s operation, and this is where the dealer supported ODIN product is designed to succeed.
Here are three of the most essential features that can be easily implemented with ODIN that are sure to help you maintain the response and management of your building’s data:
Track Trends
With ODIN’s “Trends” feature, users can easily trend any connected BACnet objects for monitoring and archival purposes. Once you select a trend, and an associated BACnet object is selected, you can set up adjustable parameters that will create a stunning chart display for you to reference. This chart will automatically update as incoming data changes, and even comes equipped with tools that will allow you to edit the chart with text and notations.
Additionally, these charts can be printed or saved as .pdfs and .jpgs, or illustrated and saved as .xlsx or .csv file. The goal of this feature is to make it easier than ever for you to track the performance of your HVAC systems, ensure they’re performing at the desired level, and then convert that data into simple charts you can use to illustrate how well (or not) your building is operating.
The goal of ODIN’s Trends feature is to empower a building operator/manager to check-in on the live performance of their HVAC systems, verify that their operating correctly, and identify any issues with the equipment that may or may not arise.
Manage Schedules
Managing and maintaining a schedule is an essential part of any successful system. That’s why ODIN comes with a “Schedules” feature that allows building operators to verify or change a particular schedule—or a number of schedules—for their building’s various systems operations.
ODIN Schedule can create a new BACnet schedule object, reference another object that’s associated with it, and then provide a short-or-long term schedule and/or an exception schedule as well. We know that building operators are often required to schedule changes regularly, and that’s why we designed ODIN’s Schedules functionality so that you can easily have access to the adjustments you need to make.
Be Notified of Alarms
With ODIN Alarms, any BACnet object you have in your building can have its own set of alarm parameters that will automatically alert you whenever there’s a problem. By creating an alarm notification and selecting an associated BACnet object, you can set-up an alarm parameter that will produce an alarm whenever that particular object’s value is out of the intended range.
The Alarms feature is intended to provide building owners and operators the confidence that they’ll be immediately notified whenever their building’s HVAC system encounters a problem. This means you and your technicians can address the source of the alarm before it becomes a serious problem, ultimately saving you time and money while also improving your peace-of-mind.
The ODIN Difference
There’s rarely a day where we’re not communicating with our machines in some way or another. Whether it’s our smartphones, laptops, or any of the other many devices that are somehow plugged into the digital landscape, we’re online more often than not.
This digital landscape is not only universal, but it’s also universally accessible. This is what automation systems want to bring to building management. With software like ODIN, anyone and everyone with an internet connected device can communicate with the various HVAC systems active in a building and seamlessly manipulate and monitor them.
However, like ODIN’s CEO, Erik Maseng, says, “One of the limitations of building automation systems is that they can be complex and usually require a trained technician to understand and manage them.” Even if an automation system is easily accessible doesn’t necessarily mean that it’s easily understandable.
Thankfully, ODIN doesn’t have this problem. With its wealth of user-friendly and intuitive features, ODIN is specifically designed to provide building managers and operators with a simple user interface that allows them to have immediate access to whatever systems they need to control. This is the “ODIN Difference,” but it doesn’t stop there.
Scalable from Single Devices to Multi-Building Systems
The problem with this fast-paced digital world we’re living in is that the technology we use is rarely static for long. Updates, developments, and iterations come and go a mile a minute, making it difficult for your buildings to remain intuitive and up-to-date.
This is why you need your building to be outfitted with a scalable BAS. Without a scalable system like ODIN, then your HVAC automation systems run the risk of becoming obsolete and in need of a premature replacement.
With a BACnet certified product like ODIN, however, you can seamlessly and effectively implement it into “devices of virtually any size, from tiny, price-sensitive application specific devices to the largest general purpose programmable devices.” This scalability applies to updates as well, allowing you to upgrade your systems as needed instead of replacing them outright.
For example, if you’re working with a single building that only uses a couple of HVAC systems, then ODIN can work for you. If you’re working with a global network of systems that connect to a multitude of devices, then ODIN’s BACnet capabilities can work for you there also. This is a product designed to scale to fit your HVAC management needs, regardless of what they may be or how many systems they apply to.
Built-In Support Network
All of ODIN’s products are administered by a network of professionally trained dealers who work with you to ensure that your system is optimized and configured exactly how you want it to be. This network of dealers is always on-hand to help you install, configure, and iterate on your system whenever you need help.
This means that, regardless of the problem or roadblock at hand, you’re never alone in the troubleshooting process.
If you have questions or concerns about how to resolve a certain issue, ODIN’s Dealer Network is here to help. And thanks to ODIN’s accessibility and scalability, our Dealers can help you from any device, anywhere, and at any time.
Conclusion: Connecting with ODIN
Managing multiple buildings’ HVAC systems can be a dense and dizzying process. With so many features to keep track of, settings to maintain, and issues to prevent, you’re going to need a management software that can help you make sense of all the data you’re responsible for.
This is why ODIN exists. We know how challenging it can be to interpret the wealth of data that your HVAC systems produce and your automation systems gather and distribute. It’s our mission to help building owners and operators not only better understand the HVAC systems and data they work with, but also cut away the busy work so they can commit their time and energy on the tasks that truly demand their attention.
If you’re one of the many managers struggling to find an intuitive way to manage your buildings’ HVAC systems, then reach out to us today and find out how ODIN can help! We want all of your buildings’ to be as manageable as possible, and with the ODIN Difference working alongside you, we think it will do just that.
