“Technology in the form of an intelligent infrastructure is fundamental to the building industry today, as it enables efficient monitoring and management of energy consumption, resulting in energy savings, reduced operating costs and an improved bottom line.”

This is according to Bradley Hemphill, Managing Director of Cape Town-based Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES), speaking last month on ‘IT for Energy Efficiency & Building Performance’ at the ConnectivityWeek convention held in Santa Clara, California.  At the cutting edge of global smart energy and green environment events, ConnectivityWeek is the only international convention focused on the intersection of energy and information technology.

The efficiencies that Information Technology (IT) has delivered to commercial and industrial operations are being realised in helping these enterprises score valuable Green points.

IT products and solutions are being deployed in organisations’ buildings as a tool to help accurately determine and manage energy consumption and increase the performance of buildings.Electrical Engineering Solutions’(EES) managing director Bradley Hemphill is one of the panelists at the annual Connectivity Week being held in Santa Clara, California in June who will discuss IT for Energy Efficiency and Building Performance.

Despite the seeming chaos of Cape Town International Airport’s rebuilding operations, progress with installing the intelligent backbone for all its Information and Communication Technology (ICT) requirements is proceeding on schedule.

And, says Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES) in a tribute to the operating skills of the Airports Company of South Africa (ACSA), the normal operations of the airport have hardly been disrupted.

The Nelson Mandela Bay Multi-Purpose Stadium, Port Elizabeth, is on track to be the first South African ‘intelligent stadium’ built to FIFA’s exacting standards, says Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES) which has been instrumental in implementing the stadium’s intelligent backbone.

The stadium’s first major event is the rugby match between the British and Irish Lions and an Eastern Cape coastal team. EES is also busy at Cape Town’s Green Point Stadium where the installation of the 500km of core cable network is proceeding apace and it is on target to meet the deadlines for next year’s football tournaments.

The technology being implemented in South Africa’s airports is on a par with the best in the world. And Electrical Engineering Solutions’ managing director Bradley Hemphill should know.  He’s just returned from London where he checked out Passenger Terminal EXPO 2009.

This annual event is one of the most influential forums for the selection of suppliers to airport development schemes around the world.

Without an intelligent infrastructure in the buildings they manage, facilities managers will increasingly find it difficult to monitor utility consumption, the first vital step in achieving energy savings and improving the bottom line, Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions.

“As utility charges increase, and become punitive for organisations that show little progress in reducing their energy consumption, for example, the pressure is on management to establish a usage base against which future consumption can be managed. 

The back-to-basics trend that has the hotel industry putting guest comfort and security at the core of their operations cannot deliver the required efficient, competitive and quality service unless an intelligent converged network is in place.

Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES), told delegates at Hostech, the hotel technology conference and exhibition held at Midrand, that smart use of technology in hospitality management can enhance the guest experience.

The logical and physical security systems need to be integrated if they are to be efficiently managed.

The implementation of next generation networks is a complex and evolutionary task that needs to integrate new and legacy technologies, while at the same time phasing out the old systems, says Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES).

EES is involved in a number of next generation networking projects such as Cape Town International Airport, Nelson Mandela Multi-Purpose Stadium in Port Elizabeth and the Green Point Stadium in Cape Town.

Existing global communications are based on three separated networks – telephony that carries voice, wired and wireless video networks for television media and the data network.

Silverberg Terrace, the Westlake, Cape Town, office block that houses Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES)’ offices, will be a case study in using Software As A Service (SAAS) technology to monitor and manage utility usage.

EES has been appointed by the body corporate to implement a system to monitor usage, check whether utility billing is accurate, advise on power-saving strategies and give the tenants and the facilities managers information on which to manage utility consumption.

Software as a service (SAAS) will increasingly be implemented as an essential tool for facilities managers to better manage their property portfolios, with a strong emphasis on utility consumption and costs, says Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES).

SAAS is application software remotely hosted and managed by a service provider that takes responsibility for ensuring the application is always up to date, integrating this where necessary with third-parties, such as telecommunications companies, electrical meters and municipal administrations. 

Successful enterprise security must be built on the convergence of Information Technology (IT) and Building Automation Systems (BAS) to ensure that logical and physical requirements are met, writes Bradley Hemphill, Managing Director of Engineering Electrical Solutions.

Logical security is that which governs access to the information networks, data storage and business applications. Physical security governs who has the right to access the enterprise campus and its facilities, and is a key application facilitated by the intelligent buildings’ backbone that is a key component of BAS.

The installation of the Information and Communication Technology (ICT) and Building Automation Systems at two of the 2010 FIFA World Cup stadia in which Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES) is involved is well under way.

The first lengths of the 600km of structured cabling is being installed at Cape Town’s Green Point Stadium while Port Elizabeth’s Nelson Mandela Bay Stadium proceeds onwards, having begun installing several months ahead of Green Point.

EES is part of the WSP Consulting team, tasked with designing and implementing the intelligent electronic transmission backbone on which all stadia’s data and electronic services will operate. The installation is proceeding smoothly, thanks to the experience of the integrator Dimension Data.

The Information Technology (IT) industry needs to urgently engage with built environment professionals to ensure that the communication needs of tenants are properly considered at the planning stages of buildings, said Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Electrical Engineering Solutions.

He recently addressed the Intelligent Building Automation 2008 symposium at Gallagher Estate  on ‘Convergence and the role of Information Technology in Building Automation Systems (BAS)’ . 

A sustainability strategy - formally documenting the answers to the ‘what-if’ discussions about the company’s operations - has been put into action at Electrical Engineering Solutions (EES).

Guiding the process is Leon Erasmus of Business Development Engineering (BDE) who worked with EES to gain its ISO 9001:2000 rating earlier this year.

EES managing director Bradley Hemphill says the strategy is a crucial for efficient management of the risk of being a key consultant to a number of mega-projects that have critical timelines. These include two new stadia being built for the FIFA World Cup in 2010,  Cape Town International Airport and Groote Schuur Hospital.

A repository of douments for all Electrical Engineering Solutions’ current projects is now accessible online to all registered clients, professionals and contractors working with the company. This will ensure that all those involved in any aspect of a project have the latest plans, schedules and other relevant documents to hand. 

Property developers put sustainable profits at risk if there is insufficient collaboration at the planning stages between architects, developers, engineers and contractors to ensure that the IT and electronic systems, especially the structured cabling infrastructure,  is designed and installed for integrated communications.

Speaking on Implementing Buildings 2.0 Today at the recent Connectivity Week in Santa Clara, California, in the heart of Silicon Valley and the connected world, Bradley Hemphill, managing director of Cape Town-based Electrical Engineering Solutions, said it is a major challenge to get property owners and developers to appreciate that the structure they are building will have little value in the future if they do not build it with a converged network.