Why use Building Controls?
KNX is a powerful and adaptable standard for system controls.  But why are controls such an important part of a modern building?

Energy Conservation

It is vitally important to make the most effective use of the world’s limited energy resource, so much so that the Government has already legislated regarding the use of energy in buildings (see Part L www.planningportal.gov.uk for instance).  A control system is a highly cost-effective way of ensuring energy use is conserved. 

For instance, a lighting control system can be simply configured to only put the lights on when someone is present in the room, and can monitor natural daylight levels to dim or turn the lights off when enough ambient light is present.  A very simple example of preserving energy, but drive through any financial district at midnight and you will see that there is an awful lot of energy that could be preserved by employing these simple measures. Effective use of lighting control alone can result in energy savings of up to 30-40%*

User Experience
Technology is moving so rapidly, as indeed are our expectations.  In the residential market, features we might expect in a high specification hotel are finding themselves installed in residential developments.  And facilities managers in commercial premises are being provided with ever more sophisticated solutions for the control of their environments. 

A common fear of specifiers is that we err on the side of caution when it comes to investing in new technology, waiting for the problems to be ironed out.  Since KNX compliant products are governed by an international regulatory body, quality and interoperability can never be compromised. The products are at the forefront of technological development, so you can invest with confidence in the future.

Flexibility
Flexibility is a particularly strong benefit of a KNX solution.  Needs change within a building’s environment and a flexible control solution allows these changes to be made with minimal disruption.

Modern buildings are always being adapted and changed to suit the occupants’ current needs and business activities. With this in mind, the control system needs to be flexible. With KNX, problems of the past such as disruption, rewiring, wastage or added hardware are no longer a concern - with KNX a system can be simply reprogrammed by an engineer with a laptop.

Now project briefs can be more guideline based, since the control systems provide the flexibility to cover a wide range of needs at little or no extra cost.

*: Slater A I. Lighting controls: an essential element of energy efficiency. BRE Information Paper IP5/87. Garston, BRE Press, 1987."