Environment
Comcast’s West Chester Facility Launches Smart Energy Management Solution
Environment
Comcast’s West Chester Facility Launches Smart Energy Management Solution
Oct 07, 2024
Comcast Smart Solutions IoT technology enables accurate, real-time monitoring of energy consumption in buildings, facilitating cost management and supporting sustainable outcomes.
Comcast’s Boot Road campus in West Chester, Pennsylvania, houses data centers, engineering departments, and back-office operations – all significant energy consumers. Data centers are notorious for this power demand, but even engineering and office spaces contribute heavily with servers, lights, computers, and printers often running constantly.
Having set a goal to double network energy efficiency by 2030, Comcast has been prioritizing a shift to newer, more energy-efficient technologies and facilities that can deliver more data with less energy per byte.
Determined to improve energy efficiency at the Boot Road facility, Comcast Director of Facilities and Workplace, Billy Osborne, looked inward to Comcast Smart Solutions for a creative approach.
Comcast Smart Solutions is a division of Comcast that specializes in cutting-edge smart technology solutions, including video analytics, digital signage, smart mobility, smart lighting, and building automation for businesses, multifamily properties, campuses, universities, and even municipalities.
Together, the Boot Road facilities team and Comcast Smart Solutions implemented a comprehensive Smart Buildings plan across the three-building campus, selecting SmartKit AI to help transform the facility with new energy management technology designed to optimize energy use, manage costs, provide real-time alerts, and help reduce waste. This includes:
- HVAC control: Optimizing heating and cooling systems, providing HVAC setpoint recommendations enabling peak efficiency.
- Preventative maintenance: Providing alerts when problems are detected, to help reduce downtime and manage costs.
- Energy anomaly detection: Identifying unusual energy usage patterns to help pinpoint potential issues.
- Cost management: Adjusting HVAC set-points, enabling lower peak demand costs, and compares energy usage to a forecast to help better manage costs.
These capabilities supported Comcast’s objectives for enhancing efficiency and optimizing operations at Boot Road. The solutions not only met the facilities team’s initial goal of better visibility, but also paved the way for cost savings and more sustainable outcomes through AI-powered insights.
One surprising discovery from the initial deployment was higher-than-expected energy use on weekends. The dashboard's detailed visibility helped the facilities team pinpoint the specific areas and usage patterns during off-hours and dial in HVAC schedules during these unoccupied times. This newfound clarity revealed which rooms and activities were driving the extra energy consumption so that the team could take steps to address them.
Data isn't just information—it's the bedrock for understanding building health and efficiency.
“Based on what we were able to accomplish in energy reduction during peak demand events, we're looking to scale the energy reduction across the campus on a regular basis for additional cost savings and efficiency,” said Billy Osborne Director of Facilities and Workplace at Comcast.
The transformation at Comcasts’ Boot Road location demonstrates how advanced energy management solutions can help optimize operational efficiency, building management, and sustainability goals. To learn more, explore the case study.
