Venture House

 

 

Venture House, Erdington, is a multi‑use health facility that includes an on‑site pharmacy with medicine distribution. The building’s heating plant comprised two boilers and a single pump set, and environmental control is important for comfort and safe medicine storage.

 

 

An aging Trend IQ2 BMS failed, forcing boilers and pumps into manual operation 24/7, removing automated sequencing, scheduling, and alarms. This increased energy use, wear on plant, and operational risk. The client had a very tight budget, and mechanical work was needed to remove redundant heating circuits before controls could be restored.

 

 

We removed the failed controller and touchscreen and retrofitted an iSMA MAC36 with a 10‑inch Android touchscreen. New control software and simplified graphics were created, and a full O&M manual was supplied. The BMS Controller was sized to leave spare I/O and logical capacity so a VT valve and Air Conditioning integration can be added later when funds permit.

 

 

The system uses a Weather Compensator to calculate the Boiler Flow Temperature based on outdoor conditions, so supply temperature rises as it gets colder and falls as it warms, matching heat delivery to demand. An adjustable DeltaT setpoint maintains a target temperature difference between flow and return by modulating the Boilers; this helps keep return temperatures high enough for efficient condensing, reduces boiler short cycling, and stabilises indoor temperatures, improving efficiency and plant life.

 

 

Automated control was restored within budget, eliminating continuous manual running and reducing energy waste. Improved graphics and alarms increased fault visibility, and the O&M manual supports handover and maintenance. The retrofit provides a clear, low cost path for staged upgrades.