C3NTINEL – analytical system for energy management

Author of the article Filip Choura, Project Manager of ENGIE Services

More articles, not only about the online tool C3NTINEL and energy management, can be found on the LinkedIn page of ENGIE Services.



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C3NTINEL is an online tool for advanced energy management using the features of “Machine Learning”. It is used to evaluate and analyze large amounts of data and helps to reduce primary energy consumption along with streamlining the operation of the monitored technology. C3NTINEL allows detailed setup of algorithms that continuously verify over time the effectiveness of the monitored parameters and, ultimately, the achievement of the planned targets.



What data does C3NTINEL support?

The online tool allows the configuration of different types of measured parameters. To unify the created data points, a common template is created, which contains the following fields – project, object, building, group of measured points, location coordinates, name, type of measured parameter, serial number, general note, information if the meter is billing, information if the measurement is cumulative, data source, frequency, data failure alarms, tags and others.



The type of measured parameter can be of different nature – compressed air (m3), concentration, cooling (kWh), dayrate, valve position (%), electricity consumption (kWh), enthalpy (kJ/kg), fan speed (%), mass flux (m3/h, m3/s), frequency (H), gas consumption (kWh/m3), heating (kWh), temperature (°C), operating hours, relative/absolute humidity (%), occupancy, PPM, pressure (kPa), production in production, pump speed, reactive current (kVArh), power factor evaluation, damper position (%), waste quantity (kg), water (m3, litres) and others.



How and how often does data enter the system?



The data flow to the system is provided in two possible ways. The first way is manual import of data using a .csv file, which must be modified according to a predefined template. This file can be imported directly by uploading it in the C3NTINEL environment or by uploading it to a created FTP server. The manual report is mainly used for new projects where historical data needs to be analysed retrospectively.



For automatic import of data it is necessary to provide a source from which the data will be taken (meter system, sub-meters and MAR). By automatically importing data from local systems, data can be monitored online, immediately evaluated and compared to historical values. With continuous monitoring combined with automatic contingency reporting, it is possible to intervene immediately with the necessary measures.



When designing the structure of the measurement points, it is essential to correctly specify what data will be available for the measurements. C3NTINEL allows you to choose from several precisely specified time periods – (frequency of data sent): 1 minute, 5 minutes, 10 minutes, 15 minutes, ½ hour, 1 hour, day, etc.



“Dashboard “s



Seeing more key information in one place is essential for energy management. A summary view of selected parameters can be set up again in the C3NTINEL energy tool, which offers a wide range of different monitoring “widgets”. The energy management team is thus able to immediately evaluate the change of settings in the individual technologies within the control room. At the same time, the tool offers monitoring of all parameters that are usually monitored in EPC projects. Of course, multiple dashboards can be set up simultaneously per project, providing an instant overview of the most important parameters in the system and throughout the entire facility. The energy service provider will also provide access to the created dashboards for the customer.





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Data visualisation



The C3NTINEL analytical tool offers monitoring of all available parameters on the project, allowing the energy team to immediately determine whether the monitored technology is working technically correctly and energy-efficiently. The measurement of the individual parameters is thus the first step for the subsequent analysis of the monitored data, which is further used for the model calculation.



For the collection of individual data, the existing measurement system in the building is used. In the event that any of the key metering points are missing, the energy manager’s role is to propose such metering to the customer.



Example of data visualization:



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Display of electricity consumption by minutes



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View gas consumption by week



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Computational model



Along with the ability to track measured values, C3NTINEL offers instantaneous calculation of the model based on other measured values (e.g. outdoor temperature, humidity, sunlight intensity, or information about the occupancy of the building at a given moment). The larger the number of parameters that directly affect energy consumption, the more accurate the consumption model. At the bottom of the figure, the deviations from the calculation model are shown, with an automatic alarm activation when the set limits are exceeded.



The blue columns show the actual measured values from which the model is calculated. The model, which shows the values calculated based on the assigned parameters, is shown in red. This method of colour display also applies to regression analysis.



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“Action Centre” in C3NTINEL



One of the basic components of C3NTINEL is the communication channel, within which users have the possibility to create requests or different types of events. C3NTINEL thus offers, in addition to advanced energy management, a place where the entire sequence of events and actions associated with each change in an energy measure can be stored in detail.



Each event, once created, is usually included in the overall list and assigned to a specific project, based on which it is displayed to selected users. C3NTINEL also provides an overview of how many requests are active or successfully closed. Together with information about its importance and the number of days since it was opened, stakeholders are able to proactively address the actions associated with it.



For each event or request created, individual steps are stored, which are immutable and are also stored in C3NTINEL without time limitation. Of course, the connection to the active part of the energy management is also provided, which makes it possible to continuously monitor the further progress of the consumption of the monitored equipment. C3NTINEL also offers the possibility to export the history to PDF format.



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Automatic reports



The C3NTINEL tool used offers the possibility to set up reports to be sent automatically to selected email addresses in a precisely set time schedule. Reports, as in the case of dashboards, can be applied for each single monitored parameter.



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