Interoperability creates value for bank

The German bank Norddeutsche Landesbank has chosen open, interoperable LonWorks technology and LonMark certified products for its newest state-of-the-art office building in Magdeburg, Germany.

The German bank Norddeutsche Landesbank (NordLB) has chosen open, interoperable LonWorks technology and LonMark certified products for its newest state-of-the-art office building in Magdeburg, Germany.

System integrator Hermos Systems, has implemented numerous decentralised LonWorks systems for the control of the technical installations and monitoring of energy consumption within the building.

Energy savings and optimised work environments are guaranteed through the implementation of LonMark certified multivendor products.

Financial institutions are often faced with the challenge of finding cost-effective building management systems.

Nowadays, banks have a large network of branches, which need to be managed.

NordLB (State bank of the northern German states), a leading financier in Germany with assets totalling Eur 200 billion, 8100 employees and 130 branches, needed a smart solution for its latest branch in Magdeburg.

Hermos Systems installed a fully functional LonWorks network to provide the control of various integrated systems in the office complex, composed of two buildings each four floors high.

The open platform enables key building subsystems (eg fire, lighting, elevators and HVAC) from multiple manufacturers that use LonMark certified devices to be integrated into a single smart building system.

And, as new portions of a building are upgraded or entire new buildings are added to a complex, users are free to pick products and services from any vendor they choose without fear of being "locked-in" to working with one supplier.

In NordLB's newest branch, nearly 2500 products from 10 different companies have been seamlessly integrated into the network.

More than 9000 data nodes have been implemented over the 15km long network.

As many as 538 LonMark certified fire dampers from LonMark partner member Gebrueder Trox were integrated into the fire and smoke detection system.

The entire fire prevention system: fire dampers, sprinklers and smoke and heat drainage are monitored via the LonWorks network.

In case of fire, the fire dampers automatically shut, the sprinkler system is activated, and the smoke and heat drainage systems are triggered.

Maintenance is conducted from a central computer, indicating the current state of each individual device on the network.

LonMark certified Xenta 301 and 401 plant controllers from LonMark sponsor member TAC regulate the HVAC system assuring a friendly work environment.

The LonMark certified actuators, from LonMark sponsor member Honeywell, have been installed in the chill beams to form part of the optimised temperature control in all rooms.

The LonMark certified weather station SE-BII from LonMark member Warema Electronic delivers weather-related information, such as sunlight intensity, outside temperature and wind strength, to the network.

These variables are also received by the blind control system to ensure, in combination with lighting control, optimised illumination conditions in each room.

Lighting outside of the building also receives these variables to avoid energy wastage.

LonMark certified I/O modules from LonMark member Lexel Electric have been implemented for the voltage monitoring of the illumination system.

An additional LonMark certified device from Lexel Electric installed in the building is the dim 1000W module.

The different lighting areas can be controlled both from the central computer as well as remotely.

This allows flexible illumination adjustment to meet the needs of the different building tenants.

Metering units have been installed across the entire LonWorks network to monitor the energy consumption in the building.

Counters deliver electricity and water consumption data together with hot and cold flow water volume data the management system for evaluation.

NordLB's staff moved into the building in a smooth process and began banking operations in October, 2002.

Meanwhile, office spaces are still being rented out in the second building and Hermos has undertaken the responsibility to maintain and configure the devices on the network according to the needs of the new occupants.

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