🏢 Christopher Naismith

Three effective strategies for lighting control are: 1) Occupancy sensing to ensure lighting is only on when necessary. One strategy is to employ where daylight is also available is allow users to turn on light manually(no automatic on) and automatically shut off lighting when no occupancy is detected. 2) Daylight sensing and control. You can automatically dim lighting when strong daylight is sensed in the space. 3) Directional task lighting. Some time it's unnecessary to light the whole space brightly when what's being done in the space is at a desk or workstation. Smaller, directional lighting can be more efficient.

One of the most important factors of any HVAC control is trim-and-respond demand logic. Be it through traditional coded sequences or through AI, a intelligently controlled HVAC system will first 1) Understand the conditions that are necessary downstream (zone setpoints) 2) Understand the deviation between setpoints and actual zone conditions through sensing 3) Set the right setpoints upstream (heating, cooling, airflow) to get the conditions to setpoint 4) Monitor the convergence or divergence between zone conditions and zone setpoint 6) Adjust the upstream conditions accordingly, and continuously. Examples include modulating airflow on VAV box damper positions, or modulating plant temperatures coil valve positions.

Align your value to the organization objectives you were hired to achieve, and the ones the organization you're targeting (if a new role) cares about.

Moving laterally to another organization is a great way to level up in your career. It is often faster than targeting upward mobility within an existing organization.

Case studies are really powerful. Change and project management is a key part of an energy manager's role. Real world scenarios should include not only the results of the project, but also the stakeholders managed throughout, and how your role contributed to their desired outcomes. Reduced maintenance call-outs as a co-benefit to a system upgrade is a great example.

Your achievements should be aligned to your core goals as an energy manager. Depending on your role, these could include: 1) Amount of energy saved against baseline 2) Amount of capital secured for reduction projects 3) Emissions reductions achieved Make sure that whatever position you're targeting has similar goals to the ones you're exhibiting in your resume.