The Electrical and Mechanical Services Department (EMSD) is committed to establishing a digitised asset management system for clients to further enhance the management and operational efficiency of their assets by applying more smart solutions in the operation and maintenance (O&M) of such assets. Our aim is to promote the development of smart city and stride into a digital era of E&M 2.0 together with our clients through wider application of smart solutions.
Taking the Civil Aviation Department (CAD) as an example, we have provided several smart solutions to the department, including the Smart Water Leakage Detection System, the Smart Carpark Management System, the Smart Water Quality Monitoring System for Fresh Water Cooling Towers, the Smart Lighting System and the Artificial Intelligence Energy Optimisation Solution (AI-EOS) for the air-conditioning system. The systems have been put into operation and effectively enhanced the O&M of the facilities at the CAD Headquarters. The new Smart Water Leakage Detection System can facilitate early identification of the leakage problem by monitoring the inner condition of concealed pipes in real time and give warning signs whenever water leakage is detected. The system can locate the parts in need of repair promptly for the relevant staff to take follow-up actions.
In addition, the newly installed Smart Carpark Management System can facilitate vehicle management and strengthen the security of the carpark with the adoption of car plate recognition technology that can automatically identify the plate number of incoming and outcoming vehicles. Real-time data on parking spaces are also available for easy reference by drivers and enhancement of the operational efficiency of the carpark. As for the new Smart Water Quality Monitoring System for Fresh Water Cooling Towers, it can monitor the water quality of fresh water cooling towers in real time to minimise the risk of transmission of the Legionnaires' disease. Unlike the previous arrangement where water sampling was carried out regularly by the laboratory to control the water quality, the system can perform chemical dosing automatically based on its readings. Equipped with motion and daylight sensors, the Smart Lighting System can adjust lighting based on changes in the surrounding environment for energy saving. The newly adopted AI-EOS for the air-conditioning system leverages artificial neural network technology to optimise the operation of the air-conditioning system based on the overall system efficiency, the building cooling load and the outdoor condition. An additional 3% of energy has been saved for the cooling system at the CAD Headquarters through the utilisation of AI-EOS.
The installation of these new systems was by no means easy, as 24-hour operation had to be maintained for all the systems during the process. That said, with extensive experience and professional competency, our team has overcome all the difficulties encountered and ensured a seamless transition to the new systems through meticulous planning. We have also set up a digitised asset management system for the CAD, enabling relevant personnel to have access to the electronic O&M manuals, which are more convenient to use than the paper ones, and helping to enhance the maintenance efficiency to a certain extent. In addition to facilitating access to information for the relevant personnel, regardless of whether they are maintenance or management staff, the system also enables them to consolidate and analyse various O&M data on a shared platform for predictive maintenance, thus reducing management costs and improving the operational efficiency of the assets.
The above mentioned smart projects are prime examples of how the EMSD can create value with advanced technologies and enable clients to experience the benefits of new O&M and digitised asset management systems, such as enhancing the O&M effectiveness and efficiency; saving manpower, resources and time; and boosting the efficiency of asset management as mentioned above.
The CAD appreciated the smart technology support provided by the EMSD team to its facilities at the CAD Headquarters, and has actively discussed with the EMSD about the possible adoption of 5G/ Government-Wide Internet of Things (IoT) Network/ IoT technologies and smart glasses in O&M systems.