John Gross, PE, ATD, Page, Houston

Networking VFDs in high-performance buildings

Historically, the use of variable frequency drives (VFDs) has been limited to large motors and projects with healthy infrastructure budgets. However, as each iteration of the energy code mandates variable flow control of mechanical systems on smaller systems, VFDs have become more commonplace. While their implementation has been typically limited to providing code-required variable flow, VFDs are capable of communicating a wealth of information on system energy consumption, equipment health, and diagnostics.