Controlling portable classrooms with Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager
HVAC management before Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager was costly and ineffective for school facility manager Randy Reeves of Washington County School District in Utah. Randy’s HVAC units hummed along all day, keeping empty classrooms warm long after students and faculty had left. Equipped with 24v Bard units, Randy lacked the ability to directly control building temperature remotely-- burning through cash after the bell rang.
Seeking a more cost-effective solution, Randy learned about Multiple Thermostat Manager, a cloud-based thermostat that allows facility managers to manage dozens of thermostats remotely. This was the tool for which he had been searching. Randy was hooked. “The Sensi thermostats are cost effective and I can install and hook one to the internet in 10 minutes,” says Randy. The simplicity of the system and the ease of use are beloved by facility managers, but it’s the savings that attract the attention of the school board. In November of 2018, Randy reported that the school’s electric bill had decreased by more than $2000 from the previous year. The only change was the Sensi thermostat, which allowed Randy to remotely shut off the units when school was not in session.
Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager exists in the space between programmable thermostats and full Building Management Systems. Certainly, the application lacks some of the bells and whistles of a full BMS, but many facility managers find that their buildings don’t actually need the full feature set of a BMS. With features such as full thermostat lockout, temperature limits, and batch scheduling, it’s no wonder that facility managers prefer the Sensi solution, and that the districts prefer the MUCH lower costs. How much lower? On average, districts are paying $2.30 per square foot for a full BMS, with Sensi Multiple Thermostat Manager, it’s closer to $0.12 per ft²!
Per Randy, the best part of working with Sensi is the customer support. “I have never been on hold longer than 5 minutes, and after each call the support person has me up and running.” But support and great savings aren’t only reserved for schools and commercial buildings. “I like the Sensi thermostats enough that I have one in my home. The features that come with the thermostat are far better than any I have used in the last 15 years.”
