The Smart Buildings Academy Podcast | Teaching You Building Automation, Systems Integration, and Information Technology

In this episode I talk with Ryan Hughson of Optigo networks about the major changes that are happening in BAS networking. Ryan and I discuss: ► What OT and IT networks are ► The big changes to BAS networking and how to address them ► Why the differences between IP and Serial Bus field controllers matter ► And much more

In this episode, I recap what BAM is about, how the podcast got started, and I look at some of the most listened to episodes in the first 100 episodes. 

How do you go about scoping, designing, installing, and programming controls?  This is the most common question I receive, every day. And rightfully so. Look, there's tons of amazing vendor training out there that teaches you how to use their tools to "do controls" but at the end of the day folks are still struggling to understand what parts they need, how much time they should budget, and how the...

Can you learn new things from an old building? In episode 98 of the Building Automation Monthly Podcast, Andy Marsh (Build Pulse) and Phil Zito (Building Automation Monthly) discuss how to use analytics in "aged" buildings. If you've ever thought, "Man I'd love to take advantage of analytics and technology to improve my building, but I can't because it's to old" then this episode is for you! In th...

Goals! It's that time of the year again. The time when millions of people around the world are creating goals to change their businesses and their lives.  Here at Building Automation Monthly we also have goals. And in this episode I am going to take you through the exciting things that we have planned for 2018.  I'm also going to do something I've never done before. I'm going to share some very pe...

Would you like to know the exact steps to take your building automation career to the next level? In this episode, I lay out 7 tips that you can immediately apply to your building automation career. These are the 7 tips that I have personally used during my career to go from being a service technician to leading the technical integration program for Johnson Controls in less than 7 years.

One of the most important parts of having a successful building automation career is having a career plan.  As the old saying goes, if you don't know where you're going any road will get you there. And often that's how we approach our building automation careers.  This has become an even bigger problem with all of the new technology that is entering the industry. We need to have a plan in order to...

When you read the words energy efficiency what do you think of?  If you're like most people you may think of long drawn out energy projects, trying to work with utilities to get rebates, and then having to do complex math and formulas to justify it all.  But what if I told you that there were several easy changes that you could make that would instantly increase the energy efficiency of your build...

Preventative maintenance is the core of good facility management.  Most facility professionals and service technicians can easily name off half a dozen HVAC maintenance tasks. But when you ask them to name off tasks related to BAS... Well, I hope you like the sound of crickets because in most cases that's all you'll hear. But contrary to popular belief there are dozens of preventative maintenance...

Preventative Maintenance. What comes to mind when you think of those two words? Do you think about filter change outs and fan belt replacements?  There is so much more to maintaining a BAS then the traditional HVAC maintenance activities.  If you've been looking to take your BAS's performance to the next level then this episode is definitely for you. By the end of this episode, you'll have a serie...

There's been a phrase floating around for the past couple years now but I've been hearing it pop up a lot more frequently lately. That phrase is OT vs IT. This phrase is actually very common in the industrial/SCADA space but if you're in the BAS world it may leave you scratching your head. What exactly is OT? What does it have to do with IT? And how does it affect you? If you've been plagued by th...

One of the biggest struggles that any person faces is what career path to go down. This is even more true in building automation. You see, building automation doesn't naturally lend itself to a "path". I've met technicians who are easily making "6 figures" and I've met senior integrators who are scraping by with "50k a year". But beyond the money, there is the enjoyment factor as well. How many of...

Depending on what studies you read, 40% to 60% of the Building Automation Systems installed are more than 20 years old. On the surface, this wouldn't be much of an issue but the real problem is that many of the BAS systems can no longer be replaced and the professionals who understand how to service them are leaving in droves. How do you deal with this problem? How can you defuse the ticking timeb...

At the end of the day, you are judged by the outputs from your designs. In this episode, I walk you through the 7 design outputs you should focus on when producing BAS designs. Producing a quality design is the biggest factor in whether your BAS project will be a cost overrun failure or a case study worthy project. In this episode you are going to learn: The 7 design outputs you must produce The s...

I've been the victim of some really bad designs and if I'm honest with you, I've also created a few really bad designs... The thing is, no one really teaches this topic.    Sure there are a ton of "webinars" out there that teach you "BAS" but mostly they are just feature fests, where some vendor goes through all the features that exist in their product. When I was first learning design back in 200...

Have you ever stopped and thought about what is required to create a good BAS design... and then once that design is created, what deliverables should you expect to receive?  If this topic seems a little muddy to you, you're not alone. Despite all of the talk out there about IoT and analytics, when it comes to the topic of BAS Design (something that affects way more projects than any IoT solution...

You've got an IP controls network and you're in a world of hurt because it's not working. You search Google looking for ideas, tech support puts you on hold for hours trying to help the thousands of other folks just like you. You're feeling hopeless.  But it's not hopeless. In this episode, I provide you 7 tips that you can apply immediately to help you troubleshoot your IP controls network. Succe...

In my last podcast episode , I explained what IP BAS controls are.  In this episode, I'm going to be diving even deeper down the rabbit hole and exploring how to design IP control systems. This episode is perfect for technical and non-technical folks. By the time you finish listening to this episode you will have a solid understanding of exactly what you need to know about designing your own IP BA...

IP controls are one of the hottest trends in the building automation world right now. Yet for many folks in the BAS profession, IP controls are a mystery. Despite the prolific marketing by some of the largest BAS brands there still is a ton of confusion as to what IP controls are and what they can do! That's why I created what may be my best podcast episode yet. In this episode, and over the next...

You can master networking...  But you need to start now! In this episode, I give you 7 tips that have been immensely helpful to me over my career in BAS. That's it... No fluff just tons of valuable insight around networking. You won't want to miss this one! You will learn: Why you must understand the first four layers of the OSI Model How Ethernet and IP are not the same The difference between Fra...

What is a building automation server?  What does it do?  Should I cloud host my server? Should I use a desktop or server class platform? If you've ever wondered these questions then this episode is for you! In this episode, I unpack the topic of BAS servers. I dive deep into the topic of BAS servers.  You will learn: What a server is and how it works? Why you shouldn't use your server as a client...

In last weeks  podcast episode , I talked through how you can enter the building automation field. But what if you are already in the field? More specifically, what if you are trying to build your own building automation group? If you've ever wondered how to build a building automation team or how to run an existing building automation team then this is the episode for you! In this episode I discu...

Do you want to have a career in building automation systems? Does it seem like every job interview ends in a salary that is too low or you being told you don't have enough experience? If this sounds familiar then this is the episode for you! In this episode I discuss: The three skills that make up a BAS professional The four paths for entering the BAS field Why most folks believe they can't move i...

I recently went through a 3-day power outage. It was utterly debilitating. Our well pump wouldn't run leaving us without water and we ended up loosing all our food. The good thing is we were prepared with backup food and water. Yet, many of our neighbors weren't and it was amazing how fast all of the surrounding stores sold out of basic goods. So why do I tell you this? The reality is so many BAS...

Man, I am so stoked for this episode. I've got to say out of all the episodes I've recorded I think this is the most value packed episode of them all! As you may or may not know, at the time of this recording I'm into my second IT for BAS class and the questions I've received have been phenomenal! What I wanted to do in this episode was to share with you some of the questions I've received from my...