Title
Sportsplex Rooftop HVAC Interface Replacement - Proposal
History
On July 23, 2016, the HVAC Allerton Interface card located at the Sportsplex failed. The Allerton Interface module was dedicated to controlling and monitoring 5 HVAC Roof Top Units (RTU) at the Sportsplex facility. With no way of communicating with the HVAC units, staff is no longer able to receive trouble notifications from the units and unable to remotely control the temperature for the Sportsplex.
The control system was developed and fabricated by Automatic Building Controls, LLC of Rolling Meadows, IL (ABC) to monitor our HVAC systems. The obsolete software and components used to control and monitor the HVACs were custom created by ABC over 13 years ago. This current “Alerton system” depends on two separate modules (Interface Module and McQuay Module) that communicate with each other.
ABC determined that the interface module failed and was no longer able to communicate or control the individual HVAC units. ABC explained that the interface module cannot be replaced because it is no longer supported by the manufacturer. ABC also stated that the McQuay module that receives information from the interface module is obsolete. Further complicating matters, any upgraded interface module would not be able to communicate with the existing McQuay module.
It is staffs determination that the HVAC communication system requires newer technology to communicate with the 5 roof top units. The steps taken now would have been required with any future HVAC unit replacement. The new communication equipment is also compatible with any subsequent HVAC replacement.
Staff obtained pricing from ABC to replace the HVAC control system. Additionally, the Sportsplex will need to install new communication cable to each HVAC unit from the current Allerton front-end server. New BACnet VisualLogic controllers will be installed for each unit. There are a limited number of vendors that operate proprietary Allerton ...
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