Matrix Technologies Inc., A Better Process for Success.
The Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) certified buildings help in protecting the environment, natural resources, and improve the health of the building occupants. The United States Green Building Council (USGBC) has developed a consensus-based, transparent, and constantly evolving national standard for LEED certification of high-performance, sustainable buildings. This provides a collaborative platform and assurance that the certified buildings have been designed and constructed to meet a nationally accepted benchmark for a sustainable built environment. It brings objectivity to the sustainable attributes of the building design and construction process. LEED provides credibility because of its third-party certification process.
LEED gives building owners and operators the tools they need to have an immediate and measurable impact on their buildings’ performance. Building projects across the country are achieving LEED certification at growing rates. The key to the success of these sustainable projects is the integrated design approach from start to finish, which includes building owners, developers, architects, designers, engineers and contractors.
The current standard, LEED 2009 For New Construction and Major Renovations, was launched on April 27, 2009. The LEED standard promotes a whole-building approach to sustainability by recognizing performance in the following key areas:
After achieving all prerequisites, these LEED credit categories add up to 100 base points; 6 possible Innovation in Design and 4 Regional Priority points. A final score translates into one of four possible levels of certification:
While upfront costs of a LEED certified project may (or may not) be higher than a conventional project, there are proven financial benefits, such as cost savings through energy and water conservation; improved worker productivity and health; insurance and risk management benefits; higher lease rates and enhanced resale value. The LEED projects may also qualify for tax credits and other local and state incentives.
Matrix has experience in assisting our customers to design their facilities to meet sustainability objectives as prescribed by the USGBC. Call or email us today to discuss your sustainability needs.
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Many industrial processes use steam provided by boilers of various sizes. These boilers are fueled from a variety of fuel sources such as coal, fuel oil, natural gas, waste gases, garbage and, in some cases, waste heat. The fuel is combined with air and burned to heat water and create steam for use in the process.
Since Matrix’s beginning in 1980, we have been involved in hundreds of boiler projects, most of which were retrofits of existing boilers, many of which had been built in the 1950’s. Critical to these projects were two central requirements: 1) Safety, bringing the boiler up to NFPA or other agencies requirements, 2) Improved operation/combustion, which translated into producing more steam for less cost.
As this newsletter is addressing sustainability and not meeting NFPA requirements, we wish to highlight those technologies that improve fuel economy. An entire book can be (and has been) written on these topics.
Boiler optimization can be done through:
Sustained energy savings created by these modifications typically creates a capital payback of less than two years, and the savings can be maintained for the life of the boiler. Contact Matrix Technologies for further information on the technologies mentioned here and to discuss how we can improve your efficiency and bottom line.
Managing your energy consumption can be very beneficial for your organization, but where do you start? There are some clear reasons for taking the steps necessary to do this efficiently including:
No matter how you rank the reasons, the process of implementing the solution does not need to be complicated. First you need to decide how far to pursue the opportunity and then, you need to decide what energy resources you want to manage. There are many software packages available that monitor specific electrical meters sold by a specific vendor. If you want to go a step further you should consider metering even more of your utilities. Third party packages are available to monitor most of your utilities including gas, electricity, water, chillers, steam and compressed air all from the same package.
Once you have the proper monitoring system in place you will then be able to make intelligent decisions about improvements in processes and resource usage and be able to measure the results.
Recently we completed the installation of an Energy Monitoring system where the customer opted to monitor both electrical and natural gas usage. Wonderware’s CEM (Corporate Energy Management) software was used for this application. This is a new software package offered by Wonderware and requires Wonderware’s System Platform architecture. A combination of new and existing meters was included was created in the CEM configuration. Custom templates were created for multiple meter manufacturers and models. In total, utility information is collected by the application object server from 32 electrical and 10 gas meters. Consumption and rate information is sent to the CEM database. The other real time meter data is collected by the Wonderware Historian. Approximately 15 - 20 parameters are collected from each electric meter. These include:
• Apparent Power Total |
CEM also offers a number of preconfigured reports and the ability to create custom reports. Wonderware’s Information Server is used to remotely view the CEM data and run the reports via the Intranet. InTouch graphics screens were also developed to show overviews of the plant with the ability to drill down into a particular area and view the meter information local to that area. There were two plant overviews created for the electric meters so that they could be arranged by physical location or by location where the power is being consumed. One plant overview was created for the gas meters. A plant one line graphic was created to allow meter faceplates to be called up if that is how an operator prefers to view the plant.
If you have an energy management or conservation need, please contact us to discuss your application.
Matrix Technologies Inc. teamed with Johns Manville Eco-Leadership Company (JM E3 Co.) in 
designing and implementing a solar project which is to be constructed at the San Diego Crime Lab located in San Diego, California. Matrix electrical engineers worked closely with JM E3 Co. and the electrical contractor to coordinate the design and implementation of the solar array system. Structural engineering was also provided in order to analyze the existing building framing system and to determine if reinforcement of the existing framing system was necessary.
The project utilized JM E3 Co. BIPV COOLPLY™ modules with integrated Sharp solar panels. The BIPV COOLPLY™ modules are pre-manufactured “wedges” with flanges that are heat welded directly to the roof membrane creating a watertight seal. The modules are extremely easy to install and provide for a very clean looking system. Once the COOLPLY™ modules are mounted to the roof, the solar panels can be attached. In total, 210 solar modules were mounted to the roof providing 47,040 watts of power.
Matrix Technologies is focused on solutions that improve our customers energy efficiency and impact on our environment. Whether your needs focus on an alternative energy source or ways to improve your existing operations through increased efficiency, we are poised to help. Contact us today to discuss your sustainability needs.
Matrix Technologies Inc, a process design and automation firm with corporate headquarters in Maumee (Toledo), Ohio is pleased to announce the relocation and expansion of its Colorado office as it continues to expand its presence throughout North America.
David Bishop, President of Matrix Technologies said, “Our move to the new office location is in response to our growing clientele and a number of new employees hired in the Colorado operation. Our new office, located in Westminster, Colorado, is twice the size of our old location providing more area for personnel offices and equipment staging.”
Matrix Technologies provides process engineering and design expertise to improve the client’s process and operations. These services include process control, software development, manufacturing intelligence systems, network design, mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, procurement and construction, and complete startup and commissioning services.
"Matrix has seen steady growth throughout 2010 in all of our offices. We have increased the Colorado staff by 50% and added 10% to our staff in the organization overall.", said Bishop. Ed Morrison, the Colorado Regional Manager, is excited about the new location and the growth potential it brings. "Our new office provides us expanded facilities to serve our customers and grow our staff. We have added several new customers in the Colorado region over the past 12 months, and look for that trend to continue in 2011.", said Morrison.
Matrix is able to provide customized solutions that are designed to satisfy the specific needs of the client by using a proven project delivery methodology that is backed up by both our ISO 9001-2000 certification and Control System Integrator Association (CSIA) registrations. Matrix specializes in providing turnkey engineered solutions to automate and improve the efficiency and productivity of the today’s demanding and high paced manufacturing plants.
Founded in 1980, Matrix Technologies, Inc. provides process design engineering and factory automation to the top manufacturers in the world. With over 150 employees, including LEED certified engineers, and more than $20 million in sales, Matrix has a tremendous breadth of process and automation expertise focused in the food, pharmaceutical, biotech, glass, metals, and automotive industries – both nationally and internationally. Matrix has extensive international experience and has over 500 systems installed in 45 countries. Matrix Technologies has regional offices in Indianapolis, Indiana; and Denver/Boulder, Colorado.
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