Johnson Controls provides its P2000 security management system for access control |
Situated on 500 acres stretching from the Caribbean Sea to the North Sound, the Town of Camana Bay is a place to live, work, play and grow. Camana Bay is a mixed-use master planned community that will be developed over several decades, allowing it to flourish for generations to come. With the continuity of its building systems in mind, the development team selected Johnson Controls early on to design and integrate the town’s major low-voltage systems.
Camana Bay was conceived as a series of four linked villages, with a resort on the west edge linking to the Town Centre and then on to residential areas and a marina village on the eastern edge of a 238-acre plot of land, which has doubled to accommodate more residential area. Camana Bay is a walkable community with a mix of housing, shops, restaurants, civic space, parks and a school.
The master plan for Camana Bay has been deliberately designed so that plans can evolve and grow organically to meet the changing markets and requirements of the Cayman Islands and its residents. For Dale Dennis, chief executive officer of DE Technology, ensuring the continuity of the town’s major low-voltage systems such as fire and security systems, HVAC controls and other technologies was critical to allowing for this growth and the changing needs of the development.
“We wanted all the systems to be integrated or at least compatible with one another so we could easily expand them as we grow, and more efficiently manage and operate them from a central facility upon completion of the development,” explains Dennis. “We narrowed the field of companies that could provide the required breath of systems and evaluated what we believed to be their strengths. Johnson Controls provided a very high level of comfort in demonstrating their systems integration capabilities and successes.”
Beginning with the end in mind
In order to create and nurture the new community, the developers made the unusual decision to start with the Town Centre and school as the foundation of Camana Bay. Residential areas would then follow once the town’s amenities were in place to support them. Johnson Controls Technology Contracting strategy of beginning with the end in mind was applied to the development’s low-voltage systems. “Considering the magnitude of this project, we knew that engaging multiple vendors, using disparate systems would ultimately result in a tremendous amount of management on our part to ensure all the systems worked together in a cohesive manner as the development progressed,” says Dennis.
“We wanted one point of responsibility that would take ownership of the complete design and installation. Johnson Controls understood the theme of the project and our emphasis on the functionality of our various building systems. And, because of time constraints resulting from Hurricane Ivan and other delays, Johnson Controls was able to provide a complete low-voltage systems design for the Town Centre within 45 days of signing the contract.” In addition to the school, the Town Centre includes office and retail space, restaurants and the central district chiller plant.
HVAC systems and equipment are monitored by Johnson Controls Metasys building management system |
The design includes a Johnson Controls P2000 security management system for access control at retail and office spaces. Video surveillance is in place at all building exteriors, parking lots and garages, and is linked to the central operations system via a Johnson Controls DVN 5000 digital video recording system. An emergency call system is also in place throughout exterior parking lots and garages. And, an addressable audio system installed throughout the site enables operators to playback multiple soundtracks and differentiate them by location.
All, non-tenant related, HVAC systems and equipment are monitored and controlled by a Johnson Controls Metasys building management system. The Metasys system is also used for the monitoring and control of an emergency generator, central chiller plant, fuel tanks, and a Lutron Grafik system for lighting in common areas. Fire alarm systems in all common areas can be remotely monitored and controlled by Johnson Controls Intelligent Fire Control Panels.
All of these low-voltage systems are converged on a single Internet protocol (IP) network which is routed back to the Command and Control Centre, a hurricane-rated facility from which all systems are managed 24 hours a day. Johnson Controls provided design assistance to the architects and engineers to ensure all systems were accommodated in the centre.
Technology Contracting brings construction and operational efficiencies
“Involving Johnson Controls early in the process ultimately helped us produce designs more rapidly than if we had done it in a linear fashion” |
Johnson Controls Technology Contracting simplifies the construction process by assigning a single point of contact for all low-voltage systems; someone who takes responsibility for managing multiple contractors and making the technology work. “Involving Johnson Controls early in the process ultimately helped us produce designs more rapidly than if we had done it in a linear fashion,” says Dennis. “My expectation beyond the initial design was for Johnson Controls to implement and commission that design accurately and on time, which they did very well. I think their relationship with the design and construction team and ability to work with local contractors played an important role in that.”
By converging all the systems on a single IP network, unnecessary and redundant cabling was also avoided. As the development expands, additional or expanded systems can ride on this same network. As Camana Bay grows and is ultimately completed, systems integration and central management will result in operational efficiencies. One example is the ability of operations personnel, trained by Johnson Controls, to monitor and control all systems from the Command and Control Centre. To support these efforts, Johnson Controls trained a local subcontractor that will take ownership of installations in future phases and provide additional training to operations personnel as needed.
“A highlight of our relationship with Johnson Controls is that they’ve really integrated themselves with the team and are highly regarded for their professionalism and accuracy,” says Dennis. “We feel they are a partner in this development that understands our goals, and are watching out for our best interest as we make design decisions that impact the final result.”