Baylor Smart Buildings

Baylor University’s sprawling campus developed over a century, so when the university wanted to take advantage of modern energy management technology, it would have to meld older building controls systems into a new, comprehensive one.

As owner’s engineer, Stanley Consultants’ responsibility was to not only set engineering standards and thresholds for efficient building operations, but to also advise its client on the appropriate – and often competing technology – for the entire campus system. At Baylor, the software running the systems and equipment was proprietary, which limited replacement parts and upgrades to one vendor. Baylor officials preferred an open-source controls software that would allow them a wider choice of new equipment.

Stanley Consultants advised and oversaw a pilot program that tested how new equipment running on open-source code would work with the current system. The pilot was instrumental in leading university officials to update their entire system, including redesigning their internal communications networks. Modern functions centralizing controls have been added, and as the program is completed, more capabilities will be realized as the university works to meet its resiliency and carbon footprint goals.