Control optimization for increasing energy performance of existing buildings

This paper presents the objective of the Energy IN TIME (EiT) project of developing more advanced control method for existing non-residential buildings. This approach will be based on advanced building simulation models to reduce the energy consumption and energy bill. The project methodology will cover the most accurate and up to date international standards for energy efficiency. A simulation reference models will be developed with both forecasted and real time data type: external (climate, energy tariffs), internal data (status, equipment, occupancy) and user behavior data. A continuous commissioning strategy will be develop to better cope with the deviations between operational plans and real operation of the building, together with a fault detection and diagnostic system, designed for overall system robustness and evaluating faulty operation scenarios. The project goes beyond existing building control techniques by implementing a prediction system for indoor comfort conditions and used behavior performance to further improve energy efficiency and equipment lifetime. This approach will allow the reduction of system inefficiencies and therefore will contribute significantly to improve building end-user comfort. EiT will centralize the remote control of different buildings in an automatic process and validate the solution in four different locations in Europe, with different climate typologies.