With origins as an electrical and lighting control infrastructure, Convia programmable infrastructure from Convia, Inc./A Herman Miller Company, has evolved to an innovative building platform that can be extended to thermostats and diffusers, audio/visual control, programmable work stations and more. Celebrating one year of energy savings capabilities and flexible commercial building environments, the company will showcase the newest additions to the award-winning system--such as its "Global Gateway," a feature that enables users to instantly view and control their energy usage--at Greenbuild 2007 in Chicago, November 7-9.
A Gold Best of NeoCon award winner at NeoCon World's Trade Fair 2007, Convia programmable infrastructure replaces the traditional "pipe and wire" approach to delivering electric in a space and allows for the complete virtual rewiring of an entire floor or building in just minutes. Switches, lighting or other electrical devices become nodes on the network and are in constant communication with one another. Programming is simple and easy via a two-button wand or an easy-to-navigate portal.
Eco-Friendly Flexibility
The potential of the original system was immediately apparent to Air Fixture, a division of Johnson Controls, one of the nation's leading HVAC distributors. Using the Convia platform, Air Fixture created a zoneable HVAC product that allows facility managers to easily rezone their HVAC thermostats and diffusers to easily correct for hot or cold spots. Additionally, there is an option that allows users to easily control the temperature of their workstation simply and easily with a software based thermostat that controls their diffuser. Research indicates that the single largest complaint of workers involves the temperature of their work environment, but the Johnson Controls system makes this a problem of the past.
Awarded a grand prize in the workplace flexibility category of Building's Innovation Awards at NeoCon 2007, Convia helps create an office of the future that is immediately responsive to users' ever-changing needs--eliminating extensive time and resources otherwise spent rewiring a space for lighting preferences, room set-up, etc. The system, which uses 100 percent reusable components, also reduces substantial landfill waste and dramatically lowers up-front labor and material costs as well as throughout the lifecycle of the building and can save energy consumption by as much 30 percent. With these sustainable attributes combined, Convia programmable infrastructure can contribute up to eight LEED points to a building, providing an extremely attractive alternative to traditional products.
Absolute Power with a PC
The newest innovation of the system, the Global Gateway enables customers to program it from the convenience of their personal computers, as energy consumption and savings are simultaneously displayed in real time. This one-of-a-kind technology is especially helpful at times when utility companies request energy customers to engage in "load shedding"--the process of decreasing power consumption by shutting off or minimizing the amount of electric appliances in use at any given time--to help prevent electrical disturbances, or "brown outs," from occurring. With the power of controlling an entire building's energy at the touch of button, users of Convia programmable infrastructure can set hierarchies of power zones, and prioritize equipment based on users' need and the electrical draw of the fixture, making it possible to instantly turn off low priority and unnecessary utilities. The Global Gateway technology immediately calculates and displays annual energy savings on a screen, while continually monitoring electricity being used to provide prompt feedback on if a space needs to "shed" more energy to meet the request.
About Convia, Inc.
Convia, Inc./A Herman Miller Company, seeks to change the way people design, build, personalize and manage space. Founded in 2006 and headquartered in Chicago, Convia is dedicated to offering customers agile and programmable environments, which allow for radically flexible spaces. For more information about Convia Programmable Infrastructure, visit www.convia.com.
Editor's note: Randy Storch, president of Convia, is presenting "Go Reconfigure: Achieving Flexible Cost-efficient, Sustainable Spaces with Next-Generation Electrical System" at the Exhibitor Showcase at Greenbuild 2007, November 8, 2007 at 11 a.m.
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