In a non-technical, high-level manner, the 2005 XML Symposium will communicate to the HVAC community the significant role XML and Web services continue to play in this industry. As the industry witnesses further evidence of IT convergence, these technologies have become the most vital enabling technology for the future of integrated and intelligent buildings. XML and Web services technologies are primarily utilized in the IT industry as well as many other industry groups that desire to leverage the Internet as a connectivity and automation vehicle.

Further goals of the day-long XML Symposium are for attendees to understand how these technologies are driving new types of standards (data as opposed to network), and they are enabling cooperation between disparate approaches to open systems, an issue the HVACR industry has battled with for over a decade. Symposium attendees will also hear status updates on XML initiatives including oBIX/OASIS, gain knowledge on specifying projects with XML and Web services, and leave with a reasonable expectation level of the adoption speed of XML and Web services, particularly in the HVAC community.