Intelligent building control in the new Vector company headquarters

© Jürgen Pollak / GEZE GmbH

• Customised digital networking solutions with BACnet
• Central control of over 180 doors in the building management system: even better comfort and safety in normal operations and in case of danger
• Interdisciplinary functionality and interaction: any time and from anywhere
• Energy efficiency: Interaction between door technology and climate control
• Support of the construction phase: Communication between product group experts
   

Another showpiece for IT specialist Vector: The IT campus and new company headquarters – which is actually the fifth building on site – opened a few months ago. 34,000 square metres of constructed area with a foyer open across all four floors, 6,500 square metre of office space, an auditorium, seminar spaces, a company restaurant and an underground car park offer 600 employees plenty of space.

Doors and windows, heating and ventilation:

we can see the big picture at all times, for all products The functions and interactions of individual product groups had to be constantly visible and controllable at any time, from anywhere. These demands were designed to guarantee maximum safety, optimal user comfort and efficient commercial operation of the building. In building management, it is impossible to continuously monitor and operate more than 180 technologically sophisticated, largely multifuctional safety door systems. This is why the whole of the automated door system is networked within the BACnet building management system via the interface module.

Distribution boxes bring it all together

With GEZE's numerous possibilities for series ranges for door, window and safety technology and their comprehensive solution expertise in construction projects, the company delivers tailored, digital networking solutions. Building owners and planners from the Schmelzle + Partner practice were impressed by the GEZE-specific solution with distribution boxes. These are the central intersection points where all the cables and the IO 420 BACnet interface module are brought together. The uniform composition of the GEZE distribution box provides the building manager with an overview of the interfaces with other product groups on each door, and of the networked building technology – however diverse the functionality of the individual doors may be.

The 18-metre high, 500 square metre large glazed foyer is both impressive and inviting. As the gateway to the Vector campus, it features a large yet sleek door system. The complete system combines accessible door comfort, access control, burglar resistance, emergency exit protection, and reliable smoke removal in case of a fire, plusremote operation and monitoring. Two 3-leaf, fully automatic revolving doors are also equipped with automatic curved sliding doors as a night-time closer.

The twin doors are flanked by double leaf automatic escape doors with the ‘strong’ Powerturn swing door drives for barrier-free access. The doors can also be manually opened with ease, thanks to the smart swing function. One of the doors is used as an RWA fresh air opening. K600 retractable arm drives automatically open the doors and hold them wide open so that smoke and heat can escape and fresh air is drawn in. With an access control system and a self-locking panic lock, IQ lock AUT also serves as a full panic door. In case of danger, anyone open it from the inside, even in its locked status.

The TZ 320 door control unit is the guiding security component of the entire door system, which controls and monitors the doors on site. The building managers can remotely record the status of this door, as for all other doors in the building, at any time via the building management system. They can select a new status of their choice or change the operating mode (for example ‘hold open’, ‘automatic’). Commands can be issued for single, multiple or all doors (central locking!). Individual door scenarios can also be added so that the doors automatically open or close in a time-controlled way.

The IO 420 BACnet interface modules handle data exchange between the doors and the building management system. The information required from the door intelligence (for example the door mode open/closed, locked/unlocked or malfunction) are forwarded via BACnet MS/TP and BACnet/IP communication protocols and displayed on various computers. All the listed commands and processes on a door – and therefore also anomalies – are traceable, because the results are fed back to an event log. Alarm messages or an undesirable door status can be dealt with immediately. Emergency exit protection (RWS) can be triggered to open a door in case of danger. Maloperation, unauthorised access, and the abuse or manipulation of emergency exit system-secured doors are displayed immediately. The modes of operation (unlocked/locked) of self-locking panic locks can also be invoked and activated.

Multifunctionality: convenient, safe and centrally operated

On the first floor, a multifunctional safety door permits access only to authorised individuals at the times specified. With the Powerturn F drive and the FT500 electric strike for fire protection doors and the TZ 320 door control unit, the door is used as a fire section and accessible escape route door. When opening is authorised, by pressing the emergency push button of the door control unit or by the alarm, the FTV 320 escape door lock unlocks the door.

© Jürgen Pollak / GEZE GmbH

The company restuarant now has interaction between the hold-open system and the climate control in the building management system. In case of a fire, double-leaf full panic emergency exits can be used across their full width to create barrier-free passage and a fresh air opening. The MBZ 300 RWA control unit unlocks the doors in case of a fire using the self-locking IQ lock AUT panic lock, then automatically ‘bumps them up’ to their maximum opening width using the K 600 retractable arm drive.

The alarm status on the control panel and the ‘Open’ door mode activate the smoke extraction motors. The door mode is automatically transmitted to the building management system, allowing the building manager to act immediately: if the alarm status is reset, the hold-open systems will close using the door closers and lock automatically. In case of danger, the doors can be opened safely by pushing the panic bar. The CB flex carry bar ensures that the door leaves open in the correct order, and that any faulty movement causes no damage.

The benefit of this solution is that the doors can be manually set for natural ventilation in summer operation and closed electrically by the GEZE electric hold-open device in the guide rails of the door closer. The building managers have control – via the building management system – of when the doors should remain open and when they should be closed. Users can of course operate the doors from the inside at any time.

The door mode recorded by the building management system is transmitted to the climate control system, which can then regulate temperatures in an energy efficient way. The doors can be automatically managed in conjunction with weather and air quality sensors and timing controls. Likewise, the electric hold-open devices on the doors can be activated or deactivated. The ‘intelligent’ control unit offers energy efficiency and burglar resistance at the same time.