For most buildings, a Backpack field technician will perform two on-site visits to install the correct equipment and assess your current facilities.
Please keep in mind, not all buildings will need the first site visit nor will all buildings have a BAS system. Your Onboarding Coordinator will help you navigate this process before the field technician is dispatched to the property.
If the first visit is required, our technician installs the Gateway device which allows our software to read your Building Automation/Management System (BAS/BMS). The second visit includes a walkthrough of all mechanical spaces and typically occurs at least two weeks after the first site visit; this gives our team the opportunity to review the data collected and maximize our time onsite for the second visit.
A building representative, typically a building engineer or property manager, is required for both visits. This person will need to be able to access mechanical areas and answer general questions. We suggest a building engineer as this person likely has a more thorough understanding of your building.
Pre Site Visit
The Gateway is a physical device that allows Backpack to connect to your building’s BAS. During your first site visit, the field technician will plug the Gateway into an ethernet port on a switch or router that is connected to the BAS network. In anticipation of the first visit, the property manager or building engineer should be prepared to guide our field tech to the ethernet port on the switch or router, an area of the building with standard or representative lighting fixtures, as well as the building’s main utility meters.
The field tech will take care of the physical installation of the Gateway while the Backpack Software will begin reading and integrating your data for Site Visit Two using the BAS.
Please identify the location of the ethernet port or router PRIOR to the first site visit. Reach out to your onboarding coordinator if you have any questions about the install.
Occasionally, we will need to enter tenant spaces. Please, notify us if there are any tenants whose space are restricted.
Site Visit One: Building Integration
Gateway Install & Utility Meter Install
Please note: If your building has a BAS we will complete site visits one and two. It your building does not, please move on to site visit two
The first site visit completes two goals. Backpack Gateway integration and utility meter documentation.
Time Needed:
About 30 Minutes for Property & Lighting Interviews
1 to 3 hours for Site Walk-Through
A technician will complete the following:
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The field tech will need to be escorted to the location of the BAS. Here, they will install Backpack’s Gateway and connect it to the BAS*. (If you are unsure of your BAS status or have questions about site visit one, reach out to your onboarding coordinator.)
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The field tech will need to be escorted to the location of the building’s electrical meters. Here, they will document the location and configuration of the building's utility meters that are paid for by your building’s ownership. In this step, your field technician will be taking photos of the meters as well as documenting their numbers. Any sub-meters as paid for by tenants will not require documentation.
Site Visit Two: Building Walkthrough
The second site visit is typically scheduled two weeks out from site visit one. This provides time for our onboarding team to collect the necessary data, and for our onboarding coordinators to compile documentation.
Time Needed:
About 30 Minutes for Property & Lighting Interviews
1 to 3 hours for Site Walk-Through
Property Team Interview, Equipment & Lighting survey
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In this second and final site visit, a technician will interview the property manager or building engineer lead to obtain answers on a variety of questions regarding the energy usage with special consideration made for any HVAC/plumbing/lighting improvements anticipated in the next year.
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The technician will then need to survey the building for typical lighting types including any building standard lighting for common areas and Tenant areas. The engineer will need to escort the technician to areas where this lighting is present and provide basic information about the lighting (fixture type, bulb information, etc.). All of this information will be entered into an online form by the technician.
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The field tech will also visit the central plant or representative equipment in the building like a chiller, rooftop unit, pumps, etc. There, they will complete the following:
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Photograph nameplates of all major HVAC equipment.
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Photograph a general view of equipment from at least 3-4 different vantage points.
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Photograph any observed maintenance logs.
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Finally, the field tech will need to visit mechanical rooms for major HVAC equipment elsewhere in the building. Please note, for buildings taller than 10 floors, the technician may only need to capture 50% of the floors and for buildings with more than 50, the technician may only need to capture every 5th floor. In capturing this information, the field tech will complete the following:
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Photograph nameplates of all major HVAC equipment.
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Photograph a general view of equipment from at least 3-4 different vantage points.
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Photograph any observed maintenance logs.
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After this final site visit, your onboarding coordinator will review the data collected and reach out with any questions.
*The Gateway is a read-only physical device that allows data to flow from your BAS into the software. The Gateway will need to be installed close to the BAS or a network connected to the BAS. An electrical outlet will also be required.
** We suggest a building manager or maintenance lead assuming that this person has a thorough understanding of your building. If either of these people are not available, someone with deep knowledge of the building would be best suited to answer these questions.