BMON System is Energy Innovation at Work

While the community of Nome is warm and welcoming, the inclement weather of the area is another story.

Summers are cool – the warm season lasts a little more than three months from June through early September, with an average daily temperature around 47 degrees. Winters are long – often accompanied by frigid temperatures, snow, and high winds, especially during the months of December, January, and February.

Taking Advantage of Technology

It is times like these where technology can play a critical role for both safety and convenience. In the case of two AHFC public housing facilities, a simple temperature sensor in the boiler room saved a potential freeze-up in January and February 2022. 

The product? The Alaska Housing Building Monitoring (BMON) System – installed less than a year prior with a central gateway in the maintenance office.

A blizzard had rolled into town during the weekend with blowing snow and high winds that caused a power outage. The circumstances had residents hunkered down riding out the storm.  Having BMON installed potentially prevented a freeze catastrophe. It also saved the maintenance manager from having to venture outdoors to ensure the heat was working after the power outage, as BMON allows remote digital management from anywhere, 24/7.

Accessibility and Convenience

While Nome is not extremely remote – Alaska Airlines operate daily flights – it is harder to get supplies and replacement parts in and out when anything breaks or needs replacing. Weather is a consistent factor with cold and extremely high winds that make it critical to keep buildings operating efficiently otherwise they can freeze quickly.

From an inventory standpoint, Nome has 30 residential public housing units that are managed by AHFC. Each home has an individual boiler which throughout the past few years have had issues following power outages. In some cases, homes would freeze if they were vacant at the time, causing expensive repairs and limiting available housing until repairs could be completed.

In the fall and winter of 2021, AHFC placed temperature sensors in each boiler room with alerts set to send text messages and emails if the temperature dropped below 60 degrees. In at least one case, AHFC staff were able to verify that boilers were working from the comfort of their own homes rather than be on site to check. This is especially convenient when there is limited maintenance staff in remote areas and numerous buildings to maintain.

Proactive Solution

AHFC’s BMON is a collaborative software/hardware solution that works in tandem to track critical facility maintenance data. While it was designed specifically for conditions in Alaska – especially for remote areas – it could be used anywhere. 

software:

BMON’s internet-based dashboard provides data available to anyone, anytime. The system is customizable to meet specific building needs, with a high degree of flexible, adjustable parameters that can be set by operators. This includes automatic notification alerts by text and/or email with visual indicators, comparative data analysis – both real-time or historical – and more. There is no required software download; the system is designed to be turnkey on an internet browser and is intended to view with low friction on a mobile device, laptop, tablet, or in-the-field. 

hardware:

BMON uses wireless sensors for tracking data. It can accept data from both inside and outside sources, such as the National Weather Service. 

Costs and Benefits

AHFC’s BMON is inexpensive, simple to use and has the potential to save thousands of dollars on avoided repairs.

Click here for more information about AHFC’s BMON System and other energy efficiency services and projects.