Heating and air conditioning is something we all take for granted. We probably don’t remember that each type of heating and air conditioning system comes with a “user beware” awareness.

We are starting a new year, and I believe the HVAC consulting engineers responsible for design engineering need to make a change in 2019 as to how HVAC systems are engineered to be safe.

Keeping fleet, machinery, and other assets working efficiently is a common challenge among equipment manufacturers; engineering, procurement, and construction (EPC) companies; and power and process plant owners and operators.

Years ago, I was responsible for quality control (QC) of our facility manager’s performance of outsourced building management services, and I did part of my QC responsibilities by completing walking tours of the equipment rooms.

This month I am continuing with another walking tour, this time a chiller plant. This tour can also be an annual or semi-annual training tour, too.

Over the next three months I’ll be taking you on a walking tour.

Johnson Controls introduces Metasys® Enterprise Management, a cloud-based optimization platform that analyzes building energy and equipment data across an enterprise to identify issues and opportunities for performance and operational savings.

Fluke Corp. has expanded the capabilities of its Condition Monitoring system to include thermal monitoring with the addition of the new Fluke® 3550 FC Thermal Imaging Sensor. Fluke officials said maintenance managers can now collect a more comprehensive variety of key-indicator data — thermal imaging, voltage, current, temperature, and power — on critical equipment to build a real-time picture of an asset’s condition.