Looking at each integrated system as part
of the overall solution is necessary when
developing owner system training.
14 I ICT TODAY
situation. Note that all these sensors
consume either battery or line
power, so use battery-powered
devices judiciously to mitigate
maintenance.
The ICT designer should verify
the compatibility of product
protocols. Proprietary systems
are becoming less common, but
there are many legacy systems still
embraced by building owners. To
overcome the protocol differences,
integration of specialized devices,
such as gateways, may be required
to allow for interconnection
of the systems.
Integration of the systems requires
a change in the approach of system
support personnel. Systems
integration must bring together IT
and facilities management teams
that may have different priorities,
cultures, and reporting chains.
These differences can make incident
or fault resolution more difficult.
Processes and dependencies must
be evaluated and documented.
Many of these decisions impact
design. Critical questions must
be addressed: How will the IT
department support the facilities
staff? Will they grant them physical
or virtual access to the network
electronics? How will security
be maintained for the telecommunications
connections when
non-telecommunications personnel
must service the other equipment?
During construction, network
electronics might be required to
be on-line sooner when a building
is converged than for only voice
and data application needs. The
installers for systems, like BMS
throughout the building, commonly
within the TRs or centralized in
a dedicated space. Note in space
planning that the relocation of
some of these systems may affect
or eliminate other closets that
traditionally housed them. Note also
that the corresponding security
protocols for TRs will need to be
adjusted to allow access
for facilities and other personnel.
When locating telecommunications
spaces, keep in mind that
to get to the periphery of the
building (or in the case of utility
metering, possibly even outside
of the building footprint) where
voice and data outlets were not
often needed in the past, it might
be cost effective to use a telecom-
munications enclosure.
Bandwidth needs increase
and fault tolerance decreases
with system integration. Where
life safety systems are being
integrated, redundancy of backbone
and horizontal cabling, electronics,
power, and HVAC need to be
balanced against the risks of
an outage. This equation looks
different than if the system is only
providing building network
and data services. The authority
having jurisdiction (AHJ)
and applicable codes will dictate
the requirements that must be met.
When considering structured
cabling for an IB, consider a solution
optimized for PoE. The adoption
of PoE is growing because of its
flexibility and simplification
of installation. PoE also has power
efficiency and management
advantages. IBs deploy many sensors
and devices that are PoE capable
which capitalizes on such advantages.
As a developing subject, PoE is
advancing quickly, and ICT
professionals should keep up with
the latest optimal solutions.
Wireless design becomes even
more valuable in an IB. Many of the
interconnections can be made via
wireless technologies. However, keep
in mind that these systems often
use wireless standards other than
the Wi-Fi commonly provided for
users, such as ZigBee and Bluetooth.
Among other functionalities,
wireless sensors can be used for
lighting control, occupancy, beacons
and temperature reporting. These
wireless sensors enable more
intelligence with less disruption due
to pathway and cabling installation,
which is very attractive in a remodel