Page 36 - EngineerIt June 2021

INDUSTRY NEWS: PRODUCTS, TECHNOLOGY AND INNOVATION

Smart home, building and intelligent community

solutions for Africa

Smart cities in Africa can benefit from ABB’s expertise and building automation know-how in both
electrical and mechanical building systems

By Yuri Ramsamy, Product Marketing Specialist Building Products Even buildings erected as recently as the
1980s consume up to twice as much energy
everal major metros in South Africa are investigating the potential that smart city technologies as new ones. However, retrofitting existing
Shave for meeting the needs of an increasingly urbanised population, which could see the size of builds is possible. ABB’s many solutions
Africa’s cities doubling within the next 15 years, according to Deloitte. A city can be defined as ‘smart’ in this regard range from EDCS (electrical
when investments in human and social capital, traditional transport and modern ICT communication distribution control system) to ABB i-Bus (a
infrastructure boost sustainable economic development, quality of life and equitable management of lighting and HVAC control system). All these
natural resources. systems are retrofittable, which leads to lower
A smart city is therefore an evolving ecosystem helping people to live, work and play in a smart, energy costs, reduced maintenance costs and
sustainable and safe way. It connects people and places through intelligent solutions and industries by fewer voids.
means of building automation. This has raised the issue of what exactly makes a building itself ‘smart’. We can expect more everyday building
Firstly, smart buildings are not new. Architects and developers have been installing separate systems to functions to become automated. Smart offices
control lighting, heating and ventilation (HVAC) for decades. will become independently intelligent, learning
Later systems have helped building managers control access to different areas of a site, mitigate how occupants use the space and services
fire risk and protect against power surges. What is new is the addition of web-based platforms to allow and then proactively adjust lighting, HVAC and
these verticals to integrate seamlessly with each other. They can deliver a single view of how efficiently other systems to maximise health and comfort.
and effectively a building operates. Managers can use this data to take proactive steps to avoid waste Buildings will recognise employees as they
and improve use, cutting emissions and making savings at the same time. arrive at work, direct them to an EV charging
What makes a building smart is the vast amount of data it generates, which effectively transforms it point and then on to a work station configured
into an iterative learning loop. Sensors in buildings track the use of assets and resources and can adapt to meet their requirements for a productive
to the changing consumption or activity patterns that take place. Buildings can make autonomous day’s work.
decisions, based on pre-installed algorithms, to adjust lighting and HVAC levels to reflect the time of Visitors to a corporate office will be
day, external environment, occupancy levels or any other variable. recognised as they arrive and automatically
Older buildings, which are common in the South African urban context, currently rely on forms of checked in, along with all the appropriate
passive energy management that are often deeply embedded into the fabric of the building itself, from access rights and personalised settings. More
the insulation to double glazing, flooring and so on. Most of these methods are highly inefficient as offices, hospitals, malls, stadia and homes will
they do not actively respond to how the building is used, nor are they easily adjustable. capture and store renewable power from the
sun and wind. Many will supply power back to
the grid or to EVs charging on site.
The proposed Lanseria smart city on
Gauteng’s west rand is expected to be
completed around 2030 and accommodate
up to 500 000 residents, featuring newly-
integrated public transport systems connecting
residential zones and industrial hubs. ABB is a
world-leading provider of smart home, smart
building and intelligent community solutions
that embrace a pragmatic and innovative spirit,
as well as contributing holistically to social and
environmental responsibility and sustainability
in ambitious projects such as this in Africa.
Smarter building solutions can take
advantage of ABB’s expertise and know-how
of building automation in both electrical
and mechanical building systems. From the
individual components through to systems and
a choice of communications protocol platforms,
ABB supports a broad range of requirements.
Its solutions cover smart mobility, smart homes,
smart buildings and smart utilities.

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