utiliVisor Builds Reputation For Building Automation Optimization

Hartz Embraces Most Important Feature Of Plant Management

Hartz Mountain Industries, one of the largest privately held real estate owners/developers in the United States, owns and operates 1200 East Ridgewood Avenue, located in Ridgewood, New Jersey. Parkview Plaza is an 111,458 sq ft, three story medical/office building built in 1984.

Supplemental Cooling is provided by eight Rooftop Units, split per zone, and heating is delivered by electric baseboard radiation. The automation system was upgraded to an Andover control system utilizing the existing Circon digital variable air volume box control.

Problems Noted

Building management noted severe comfort problems in this building, no matter what season. In the winter, the building never recovered from temperature setback at night and during the summer tenants complained of uncontrolled temperatures. The building tenants were a combination of financial service/trading areas in addition to medical offices.

The Solution

utiliVisor provided project management services to coordinate the implementation of a new BMS control system at this facility. This program was performed in connection with commissioning the performance of the rooftop systems and the functioning of the electrical perimeter heating system. utiliVisor was installed monitoring data from the Andover system and identified additional operating problems. These problems included the following:

  • Incorrect temperature sensor locations
  • Restricted return air plenums
  • Incorrect building warm-up and cool-down procedures which forced electric heaters to run during peak hours.
The Results

The utiliVisor system in conjunction with the “Hartz Team” corrected many of the chronic comfort complaints tenants experienced. utiliVisor also ensured the morning warm up was properly accomplished. This resulted in a decrease in electrical demand in the winter months because the electric heaters no longer had to run during peak hours.

“The most important feature a company can offer related to the chiller and plant management is the ongoing and continual supervision of the operations of the systems without that you will not maximize the performance of the plant and money will be wasted in energy efficiency.”
– Sal Gentile, Vice President Property Management – Hartz Mountain Industries
Energy Oversight + Insight

Industry: Commercial Real Estate Class “A”
Location: Ridgewood, NJ
Implementation: utiliVisor Energy Plant Services
Savings since utiliVisor installation: $40,739
Electrical Reduction (kWh): 216,550 kWh

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