Open protocols and interoperable systems are at the heart of today’s control networking world. In the IT field PCs talk to PCs around the globe – irrespective of the supplier or source of origin - scanners talk to printers, cameras talk to PCs, and so on, while the complete IT infrastructure communicates on a common bus with common language. The same is achievable in the building services field.

Commercial buildings have a number of subsystems – security, lighting, lifts, power, life safety, and HVAC – that are crucial to a well-run building. But traditionally these have operated separately or, at best, been connected through a series of costly, hard-to-maintain gateways to a single human-machine interface.

An open control system is one that is built with modules that conform to uniform industry standards. Open, interoperable systems are all about choice. No longer are end users locked into lengthy, costly service and upgrade agreements from a single vendor. Instead, they can have systems maintained by one of a number of companies and can mix and match open-products that best suit their needs, choosing from a variety of vendors, and knowing they’ll all work together smoothly on the network.

By conforming to published standards, disparate devices from various manufacturers become instantly interoperable and can work seamlessly together on a network without needing gateways to translate data. Networks based on open standards lower costs and offer enhanced features not available in closed, proprietary systems.