ControlTalk NOW — Smart Buildings VideoCast for week ending July 3, 2016 brings attention to the people-side of the Buildings Automation industry while manning the vendor shows at two of the industry largest and most significant shows: 2016 Tridium Summit and the 2016 Realcomm/IBcon. Interviews with these Industry superstars: Intellastar’s Terry Casey; Johnson Controls’ Dimitri Papadopoulos; Hepta Systems’ Ted and Jason Houck; Page Southerland’s Tim Howell; Viconics’ Matt Krueger; Interactive Energy, LLC’s James Burtch; along with ACI’s Barry Gordon webinar and a product review of Honeywell’s Lyric thermostat.
Honeywell Lyric: Redefining What a Thermostat Can Do. Honeywell keeps coming up with cool stuff. Yes, thermostats are cool, because there are different shapes, sizes, colors, and apps. But, look at this video to see how Honeywell takes the cool thermostat to the next level and makes it practical. No need to worry about coming home and finding out your pipe burst or a leak turned into a flood. The Honeywell Lyric will let you know before problems get out of hand. I wonder what else they will hang onto their residential thermostat network?
Catching Up with Intellastar’s Terry Casey. Lots of great people and Smart Buildings Controls Experts at the 2016 RealComm/IBcon show. I got a chance to be the “in the field reporter” for Realcomm Conference Live, and one of the people I interviewed was Intellastar’s Terry Casey. With the likes of controls superstars Terry, Steve Lynch, and Jerry, Andy, and Brian Frank, Intellastar has put together the “dream team” of the smart buildings controls industry.
Learn About the Most Current Current Sensors — Right Here, Right Now! Yes, I know it is a bit of a play on words, but Barry Gordon and the team at ACI do not play around — when it comes to making current sensors and other products for the smart buildings controls professional. ACI has started doing live video training! We announced the first one a couple of weeks ago. If you missed it, no worries, you can watch it right here, right now.
Johnson Controls’ Dimitri Papadopoulos at the 2016 Niagara Summit — Facility Explorer is Better than Ever! Dimitri Papadopoulos, Senior Product Manager explains why Facility Explorer® is better than ever! To celebrate Facility Explorer’s tenth anniversary, Johnson Controls released Facility Explorer 14. Featuring a cleaner, faster user experience, enhanced cybersecurity and new ways to improve user productivity. Dimitri was particularly excited about the Mobile Access Portal, which offers an excellent display on your iPad, smart phone, or laptop; serves as a great commissioning tool; and can be used as a main user interface for smaller-sized projects.
Mark Your Calendar for Digital Transformation 2016. Digital transformation is everywhere. We recently covered the 2016 Niagara Summit and Realcomm/IBcon and posted lots of videos showing how technology in the Smart Buildings and Intelligent Buildings space is evolving at a very rapid pace. And speaking of pace, this conference coming up in Portland in September looks interesting. Here is what they have to say about it: “Leaders facilitating the digital transformation within their companies converge to share best practices. This is the leading conference from digital game-changers for digital game-changers.”
Ted and Jason Houck Make Big Connections at Realcomm Conference Live. Ted and Jason Houck, from Hepta Systems, do one of the coolest demo’s I have ever seen, and they do it on a live stream at the 2016 Realcomm/IBcon Conference Live. Hepta Control Systems has won numerous awards, including being voted co-winner of the ControlTrends Awards Systems Integrator of the Year Award. They are a leader in integrated building automation and security controls. Hepta provide single driver seat solutions for energy efficiency, security, and tenant comfort systems. Watch this video to see what makes Hepta so special.
Enlightened Consulting Engineers at the 2016 Niagara Summit — Part 1. The man, the myth, the legend, Ken Smyers and I are constantly talking about the need for a new breed of consulting engineer for the Smart Buildings Controls industry. Cut and paste specifications are no longer acceptable. This new breed of engineer can be found at smart building conferences like the Niagara Summit and Realcomm/IBcon. They know that open is not just something you do to a can of beer on a hot summer’s day.
Matt Krueger and the Viconics VT8000 Series at the 2016 Niagara Summit. Matt Krueger is an integral member of the Viconics technologies sales team with a passion for providing excellent customer support. Matt does an outstanding 411 presentation of the VT8000 series controller, which provides a very cost-effective alternative to direct digital controls to control roof top units, heat pumps, and indoor air quality applications — dramatically reducing project delivery cost at the installation and commissioning phases.
Enlightened Consulting Engineers Part 2 — James M. Burtch at the 2016 Niagara Summit. ControlTrends had the opportunity to interview James M. Burtch, a young, up-and-coming Energy Sustainability Consultant. Actually, it’s James M. Burtch, C.R.M., C.D.S.M., C.B.C.P., C.L.E.P., C.E.M., and Honeywell EEO Certified. As evidenced by the host of certification designations following his name, Jim has dedicated much of his professional career pursuing and obtaining the professional expertise that enables him to write enlightened building automation systems specifications that ensure owners gets what they want and that the contractors meet the specification.
>Honeywell’s Larry Andriunas at the 2016 Niagara Summit. We had a chance to catch up with one of our favorite people at the 2016 Niagara Summit Product Showcase. Honeywell’s Larry Andriunas is the “Controls guy..Controls Guy”. Larry grew up working with his father’s HVAC and integrator business. Larry knows first hand how important quality products and great customer support are to systems integrators. Larry, winner of the 2015 ControlTrends PID Award, helps Honeywell stay on top of their Smart Buildings control game. Larry gives us the 411 on Niagara 4 and how Honeywell is making the most of this new version of Niagara.
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2013 ControlTrends Achievement Awards: TrendSetters Recognized. The ControlTrends 
Meet the U.S. Safe Drinking Water Act “Lead Free” Standards with GC Valves NSF Solenoids. 
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The 2013 ControlTrends Awards and red carpet event at NYC’s BB King Club and Grill were a huge success! The same fierce storm that delayed this post (hotel internet service down) unfortunately, also caused many to miss this exciting industry milestone. Austin Powers, Marilyn Monroe, and Frank Sinatra were on-hand to assist MC, Marc Petock in recognizing the HVAC and Building Automation superstars, heroes, and award winners of 2013. ControlTrends Awards also unveiled the ControlTrends Awards Museum, the future digital home of all the nominees, award winners, and members of the Hall of Fame, as well as the integrated information source and documented history of the HVAC-related industries. Also announced, were its second Hall of Fame Inductee, Jerry Frank and the Petock Award recipient, John Petze.