A “massively successful” pilot of an artificial intelligence-powered building optimization system in Halifax's Maritime Centre could be the start of a fruitful relationship between its Canadian partners.

The building’s owner Ravelin Properties REIT and manager Colliers Real Estate Management Services Canada partnered with Dartmouth, N.S.-based EcoPilot Canada I USA, integrating EcoPilot’s platform named iBOS into the existing building automation system (BAS).

Used to optimize the centralized HVAC system of the 529,269-square-foot office building in downtown Halifax, the year-long test ended in April.

It resulted in the Maritime Centre reducing not only carbon emissions, but the size of its energy bills. Over $110,000 in savings were generated, with natural gas consumption reduced by seven per cent and electricity use by eight per cent.

"I think it's been massively successful," Tobias Janes, EcoPilot’s director of technical solutions, told Sustainable Biz Canada in an interview. "One, I mean, we've saved a lot of energy. It’s great. Their payback is going to be much quicker than we initially expected,”

Janes said the pilot has also become a model for future projects.

Its iBOS software is used in over 1,400 buildings across North America, with notable Canadian real estate clients such as New Glasgow, N.S.-based Crombie REIT, Ottawa-headquartered Minto Group and Vancouver-based Concert Properties.

The 'Cadillac' of EcoPilot

iBOS, the “Cadillac of our offering” according to Janes, adjusts the performance of HVAC equipment based on data points such as indoor temperatures, weather forecasts and the building’s capacity to absorb and release heat.

Every two minutes iBOS tweaks the HVAC system based on those factors, adding or removing a precise amount of heating and cooling to maintain comfort range in a space. For example, if the temperature is expected to rise over the day, the heating system will run at a minimum.

“What we look to control is that supply temperature setpoint, so how much energy is being put into the building,” Janes said.

Buildings with iBOS save between 20 and 40 per cent on HVAC consumption, explained Jennie King, a general manager at EcoPilot. This means smaller energy bills and carbon emissions, she said.

Users have the option of paying an installation fee and adopting a software-as-a-service model in the second year, or as Colliers and Ravelin opted, a flexible financing model with the installation fee paid back through energy savings.

The company’s main product has been used in schools, hospitals, multiresidential buildings and office towers like the Maritime Centre. Health care buildings are a market it has been branching into, with King saying iBOS will be deployed in a cancer research centre in New York and a health authority in Nova Scotia.

It has found a receptive customer base in its home market of Atlantic Canada, but also Ontario and increasingly more in Western Canada, King added.

Halifax buildings equipped with iBOS include Groupe Mach’s 1801 Hollis St., Crombie’s Scotia Square development and the Halifax Marriott Hotel. iBOS shrank natural gas use by 24 per cent over five months of implementation at the hotel, resulting in total building energy savings of 13 per cent.

A highly successful pilot

Recounting the pilot program, King said EcoPilot first engaged with Ravelin to provide a building assessment. The company examined the building operations, BAS and historic data of Maritime Centre to lay out the scope of work and estimate the savings from iBOS.

Ravelin proceeded with the pilot, and EcoPilot engaged with building manager Colliers and BAS contractor Johnson Controls.

“The effort required from Ravelin and from Colliers is very minimal,” Janes said regarding their involvement. EcoPilot worked with Johnson Controls and the experienced building operators to integrate its software and ensure its assumptions about the building were correct.

Once iBOS was integrated into Maritime Centre’s BAS, it managed the air handling unit on each floor plus the centralized unit, Janes said.

“The software takes control on Day One.” he said. “Then it’s just a matter of having these conversations and further tweaking the building as we go through especially Year One.”

From the experience, EcoPilot’s team learned to prioritize communication, collaboration and accountability with its partners, Janes said. A 30-minute call held every quarter with the involved parties is enough to ensure the project is going according to plan, he said.

The software company also gained an appreciation of the importance of having buy-in from the building operators, who are most familiar with the inner workings and history of the building.

The pilot, Janes said, defined what a good integration can be, and is an ongoing model for EcoPilot’s collaborations with Colliers.

King said to expect EcoPilot to announce more partners.

“EcoPilot’s performance at Maritime Centre has been encouraging, and should our confidence continue to grow, we would be keen to explore how it could benefit other properties we manage,” Mer Ebrahimzadeh, the national energy and sustainability manager of Colliers, said in an emailed statement.