MELCloud Commercial is gamechanger in efficient energy management

In 2013, Mitsubishi Electric pioneered the launch of MELCloud Home for residential settings. Ten years later, MELCloud Commercial followed, an intuitive and smart platform that evolved into a full-fledged energy management system for HVAC technologies in professional applications such as hospitals, offices, museums, but certainly also hotel and hospitality.

Mitsubishi Electric is a leading manufacturer for quality heat pumps, air conditioning and ventilation systems. Thus, the international company provides everything related to indoor and outdoor climate. With MELCloud Commercial, Mitsubishi Electric makes smart energy management accessible and simple. "MELCloud Commercial allows HVAC systems to be managed and monitored via the cloud," explains Rudy Gielen, manager of corporate sales at Mitsubishi Electric. "Central control is a must to manage a building efficiently and effectively and to provide local comfort. MELCloud Commercial makes that control easy via an application on your smartphone or a web application."

Central energy monitoring

There are three choices in MELCloud Commercial. With the basic module, you monitor HVAC applications via the app or website. This function easily turns units on or off, sets the mode to heating or cooling, controls the temperature, reads error messages, schedules timers, ... You have the option to extend this basic package with the MELCloud Commercial Energy License. "This allows you to do central energy monitoring and to monitor and analyse the consumption of HVAC systems," says Rudy. "It also displays data such as exceeded system measurements, excessive energy consumption in specific rooms or efficiency that does not meet predefined expectations."

Service and maintenance

A third option is to further complete the basic version and the MELCloud Commercial Energy License with the service and maintenance package. Then the units are technically assessed remotely. "We dive into the heart of the unit via the cloud and check its operation and any malfunctions," Rudy explains. "These we monitor and adjust via remote interventions. This is much faster. On the one hand because we work remotely, on the other because we have all the info and take all the spare parts with us when we do have to go on site. Is your unit no longer getting power? No problem. MELCloud Commercial is not solely dependent on Wi-Fi and can also work via a 4G or 5G antenna or an LTE network. So we always have a real-time connection to the unit and, as a customer, you don't have to worry about things like network security." 

The maintenance hatch involves Mitsubishi Electric making a concrete proposal for the timing of maintenance. This is sometimes statutory and sometimes plant-specific. "If that maintenance takes place physically once a year, then we propose an additional remote maintenance. We check the installation for abnormal values that could indicate a clogged filter, for example. That way you prevent greater damage. Artificial intelligence also detects deviations in the system or in the returns at an early stage. That way, you do predictive and preventive maintenance at the same time."

Avoiding additional costs through analysis

Measuring is knowing, that much is clear. Mitsubishi Electric equips all RAC, PAC, VRF and HVRF
systems with MELCloud Commercial, and in a later phase all other product groups. "MELCloud Commercial also works across borders, an important asset for chains that want to monitor their buildings internationally," says Rudy.

To illustrate the effectiveness of MELCloud Commercial, a hotel with 96 rooms was analysed. According to data from MELCloud Commercial, one of the rooms consumed 1057 kWh on 52 days, while similar rooms during the same period averaged around 130 kWh at 50 per cent occupancy and 260 kWh on average at 100 per cent occupancy. That cost an extra 4.60 to 5.35 euros per day. "Through the data from MELCloud Commercial, the excessive energy consumption was noticed and quickly resolved. Energy monitoring and optimisation are indispensable. Not only for cost purposes, but also to reinforce the sustainability vision of both Mistubishi Electric and the hotel and hospitality sector. Through MELCloud Commercial, you perform those checks in a visual and accurate way."