For 2017, ABB has updated its checklist for building services consultants.  When specifying VSDs, ABB Drives urges consultants to review their requirements and ensure the selected drives meet them. According to ABB, initial purchasing represents only about 20% of total cost of ownership of an HVAC system the balance being the operating and running costs.

The performance of variable speed inverter drives continues to improve as manufacturers develop new performance algorithms for improved energy efficiency and lower energy bills, reduced maintenance and more flexibility for end users, as well as faster installation and commissioning for contractors.

Current models of VSDs bring enormous benefits to buildings, whether commercial, residential or industrial. Yet many of these benefits are not widely recognised.  As a result, end users could be missing out on significant cost and time savings through. Benefits include:

– Improved energy efficiency, leading to lower energy bills

– Faster installation and commissioning times

– Reduced maintenance routines

– Greater adaptability and flexibility when using drives in buildings

BEMS/BMS

Drives like the ACH580 have been specifically designed the match the HVAC applications and BEMS/BMS sector including improved harmonics and communication networking. Dedicated HVAC features include intelligent pump functions such as level control, soft pipe filling, sleep and boost, pump cleaning, pump protection, flow calculations and multi-pump control.

Connecting drives to a water plant’s control system is simplified using pre-defined macros or by simply connecting to one of several built-in fieldbus options. The drives have built-in PID controllers that allow them to cope with demanding pump and fan functions without the added expense of an external controller.

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