Wills Memorial Hospital

Authorized Dealer Integration & Control Solutions (ICS) retrofitted WMH with a Reliable Controls building automation system in 2022.

ICS installed a MACH-ProWebCom controller, a unique combination BACnet Building Controller, BACnet Operator Workstation, and powerful web server, to allow facility managers to conveniently access and control the hospital’s mechanical equipment over the internet. For large mechanical room equipment, a MACH-ProCom controller provides extensive network routing ability with highly scalable inputs and outputs.

Facility managers use customized graphics to simplify HVAC system data by shading areas being controlled by equipment. These graphics also allow users to easily navigate equipment and provide a flexible way to display data. ICS created useful summary pages for groups of equipment and systems.

For VAV control, ICS implemented 81 MACH-ProAir controllers, each with an airflow sensor and onboard damper motor, eliminating the need for separate sensors and actuators. Twenty-two MACH-ProZone controllers, ideal for midsize rooftop and heat-pump applications, provide efficient zone control in a small footprint. Fifty programmable SMART-Sensor devices around the hospital deliver a modern communicating sensor solution that allows facility managers to connect with up to 10 configurable parameters related to space, including temperature.

The existing HVAC system was poorly designed, with two additional variable volume terminals serving as backdraft dampers. ICS was able to improve performance and comfort by customizing programs for equipment operation that compensate for some of the design restrictions. With Reliable Controls, ICS was able to integrate all existing third-party BACnet devices, including rooftop units, humidifiers, variable volume terminals, variable air volume equipment, heat pumps, exhaust fans, and hot-water monitoring, into a single control system that is flexible, efficient, and easy to use.