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9 The biggest trends in commercial HVACR right now are tied to building systems becoming more connected, efficient and responsive. And it's not just because of tightening regulatory constraints. While the Department of Energy (DOE) and other agencies have set their sights on reducing the impact commercial buildings have on the environ- ment, building owners have their own reasons to demand more innovation and efficiency from their HVACR systems. Namely, this: commercial buildings use more than $190 billion in energy every year. Inside this report, we'll examine these two sources of pressure and the trends that have emerged as a result. They include: • Evolving Regulations • Getting Smart • Human Comfort • Integrations and Connections • Open Systems • Industrial Internet of Things As front-line components in HVACR systems, sensors are playing an ever-expanding role in helping drive many of these trends forward. Read on to learn more about how that's happening. Trend 1: Evolving Regulations Over the last several years, there's been pressure to cut commercial energy consumption. The pressure's been so steady, in fact, that by 2023, HVACR efficiencies will be required to have improved by 50% over 20 years ago. This may read as old news to some, but many of the newer regulations are just now going into effect. And with that, new solutions will be needed to expand upon existing efficiency efforts. Sensors are often at the core of those solutions. Take, for example, the DOE's Direct Final Rule 79 FR 17725 which went into effect in March 2017. The rule requires maximum daily energy consumption for certain commercial refrigeration products to be reduced by 30-60%. In the rule, the DOE called for greater efficiency to defrost mechanisms. There was debate as to whether the rulemaking committee's compliance date was achievable, because some thought there'd be too much research and development needed to improve defrost sensors to meet the DOE's goal. The DOE, meanwhile, responded by outlining a solution that would use an optical sensor or temperature sensor to detect the temperature differential across the evaporator coil. While the two sides disagreed on what technology was needed, the debate underscored a fine point: sensors were core to solving the problem. Trend 2: Integration and Connections The ability to tie together multiple building components—along with other systems—is certainly not a new trend. And for good reason: Enabling heating, cooling, and lighting systems to work together can mean big gains in efficiencies for commercial buildings. Much attention is being paid to the role occupancy sensors can play in helping better control the systems (and the energy savings that comes along with it). But there's also a lot of room for better interoperability even within HVACR: combining temperature sensors, pressure sensors, and humidity sensors to create more efficient heating and cooling solutions that are also more comfortable for those who work in the spaces. Of the three, humidity sensors have been the biggest change to the equation, as they directly correspond to human comfort while allowing systems to put less stress on temperature control. Another under-discussed piece of the puzzle: wireless sensors for future flexibility. Systems-wide integrations often require more sensors in more places. If those sensors are analog, they can require more effort and hardware for the sensor interface, with limited flexibility for future modifications and improvements. Digital sensors, on the other hand, have improved the resolution they can offer in recent years and are approaching the levels of resolution offered by analog sensors. They also offer more flexibility in terms of the amount and type of information they can provide to the control system. This helps create systems that can be more easily adjusted and upgraded throughout their lifecycles. Trend 3: Getting Smart Similar to the industry's move toward greater integration is its move toward smarter systems and increased smart communication with energy grids. SENSING CHANGE: SIX HVACR TRENDS MOVING THE INDUSTRY FORWARD

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