New iCon Environmental Innovation Center Aims to Set High Standards in Green Design

A building in the UK has become the first in the world to have an innovative self-adjusting Wireless Building Monitoring System installed by the energy management company, Seamless Sensing. This award winning iCon environmental innovation center in Daventry, UK is a state-of-the-art building, offering office accommodation and a supportive environment for firms working in green technologies and sustainable construction.

In the pipeline are 55 business units and a 300 people capacity exhibition space and cafe that is scheduled to open for business next month. The building already has two design awards under its belt. In 2009, it won a Milton Keynes-South Midlands Design Excellence Award and in 2010, a Green Apple (News - Alert) Award for the Built Environment.

Seamless Sensing, based in Nottinghamshire, UK, provides wireless energy management systems designed to reduce energy usage and increase occupant comfort. In a statement, Dr Edward Mellor, founder and chief executive of Seamless Sensing said, “Across the entire iCon site, our intelligent Wireless Building Monitoring System will record information on gas, water and electricity usage and automatically optimizes heating, cooling and lighting systems. It will make a big difference by ensuring the building and its occupants maintain optimum energy efficiency and will help with the introduction of effective energy consumption reduction strategies to save costs short- and long-term.”

Highly reliable smart energy monitoring solutions have been installed, which give second-by-second breakdown of energy consumption, from temperature and humidity to light and electricity. The wireless technology automatically pinpoints equipment and areas of the building, which are wasting both energy and money.

“The iCon will set a benchmark for energy efficiency and includes a number of low carbon design features. Seamless Sensing’s smart energy monitoring solution is an important part of the building’s highly sustainable design and will help us to minimize energy consumption,” added David Walker, chairman of iCon East Midlands.

Some of the features of this Wireless Building Monitoring System are its ease of use, energy efficiency and sustainability. Without intensive technical expertise or personnel, the system uses individual sensor modules, to wirelessly monitor energy outputs of individual pieces of equipment second-by-second. This live information is then automatically transferred directly to an online web account where customized reports can be created and sent by email or text, or viewed online. The building has been designed to achieve an ‘Excellent’ rating from BREEAM, the leading assessment method for the environmental performance of buildings.