For years, Johnson Controls’ Metasys solutions have been a reliable bedrock of building energy management. Metasys has been around for decades and, by and large, Johnson Controls has done an excellent job maintaining backward compatibility, enabling facilities to keep systems running well past their expected lifecycle. In fact, it’s not unheard of to find that Metasys platforms installed 20-plus years ago are still in operation today.
But longevity doesn’t always equal sustainability. Today, these legacy Metasys systems are becoming more of a liability than an asset. If you’re still relying on outdated Metasys solutions, there are compelling reasons why now is the time to update and modernize.
Hidden Costs of Maintenance
Hanging on to your old Metasys platform may feel like a cost-saving strategy, but consider what running an outdated system well past its prime may really be costing you in:
- Rising maintenance expenses, including specialized labor and obsolete parts.
- Limited visibility into system performance and energy usage that keep opportunities hidden.
- Inefficient operations that quietly and gradually drive up energy consumption and utility bills.
- Increasing downtime risk and disruptions as aging components unexpectedly fail.
Bottom line: by delaying Metasys upgrades, you’re actually increasing your total cost of ownership.
An Open Door for Cybersecurity Risks
Cybersecurity is a serious risk and a growing concern for facilities departments. According to a Honeywell survey, seven in 10 facilities managers are worried about the lack of operational cybersecurity to protect their buildings. And approximately 27% of facilities managers experienced a cyberattack in the last 12 months.
Legacy Metasys platforms predate today’s complex connected environments. As such, they lack the security architecture needed to keep out modern cyberthreats and malicious actors. This creates potentially disruptive and costly exposure with:
- Unsupported operating systems and unpatched vulnerabilities.
- Weak or nonexistent network segmentation.
- Limited logging, monitoring, and incident response capabilities.
These vulnerabilities become particularly prevalent in today’s modern building landscape, where OT systems are now integrated with IT networks, opening backdoors for hackers. Read more about that here.
The Multiple Advantages of Metasys Modernization
When you’re focused on maintaining and securing outdated Metasys, you’re not capturing the real performance advantages of this powerful platform. Yes, upgrading to a modern Metasys solution is an investment of time and capital, but that investment pays off significantly in multiple ways.
Better Visibility
Updating your Metasys system connects you to advanced analytics that provide greater visibility into how your building systems and controls are performing, exposing cost centers and opportunities for improved efficiencies and savings.
Streamlined Integration
Modern Metasys platforms are ready to integrate seamlessly with your other building systems, networks, as well as the cloud. Your Metasys becomes part of a unified building automation system (BAS) that streamlines processes, optimizes performance, and improves efficiencies.
Fault Detection and Diagnosis
A modern Metasys platform enables you to enhance fault detection, diagnosis, and troubleshooting, with the ability to proactively prevent disruption, triage issues, and respond faster before potential problems impact performance and profits. Struggling with training and mentoring new operators? Metasys can directly point out potential problems and includes a step by step guide for potential troubleshooting means and methods. Operators can learn on the job as they go.
Improved Occupant Experience
Updating your Metasys platform allows you to better optimize HVAC, lighting, and other systems to provide a safer, more comfortable occupant experience that increases satisfaction and productivity.
Disaster Recovery
If your aging Metasys system went down today, how quickly could you recover and get it back up and running again? What would the disruption cost you? Updating your Metasys platform is a critical part of your continuity strategy and key to protecting your assets and data from unexpected events and failures.
Combined, these advantages translate into substantial cost savings and ROI. Indeed, according to Johnson Controls’ own research, upgrading to the latest Metasys platform can reduce infrastructure costs by up to 60%.
Easing the Transition to a New Metasys Platform
Updating your Metasys system may seem like a daunting task. But with the right process in place, it’s doable with minimal disruption. The best approach is to take it one step at a time.
Step 1: Define Your Goals
Take the time upfront to determine what goals you want your building systems to achieve in the short term. Reduce energy costs? Secure against cyberthreats? Improve the occupant experience? Transition to BAS? Move to the cloud? Consider, too, your objectives over the next five to ten years. Then determine the role your Metasys platform should have in supporting these current and future goals.
Step 2: Assess Your Current State
Do a pulse check. Evaluate where your current Metasys platform sits in its lifecycle. Which components are outdated and no longer supported? Is your aging system exposing you to operational or cybersecurity risks? Which systems are most critical to your building performance? This audit provides the foundation for a smart, phased upgrade approach.
Step 3: Prioritize and Phase
The good news is: your Metasys modernization doesn’t have to happen in one fell swoop. Prioritizing which systems you need to upgrade first and taking a phased approach will make the transition much more palatable and less disruptive. Here’s a proposed approach.
- Start with the backbone of your system: Upgrade the network engines and servers, modernize your graphics package and user interface, and close any cybersecurity holes.
- Move to your critical building systems: These include your HVAC and central plant systems, lighting controls, access control and security systems, and any system that impacts multiple building operations.
- Address field-level components: Look for anything that might be on the verge of failure, such as aging controllers, or sensors and devices with declining accuracy or reliability.our continuity strategy and key to protecting your assets and data from unexpected events and failures.
Step 4: Build the Budget and Timeline
Once you’ve prioritized and identified your phases, back in a realistic budget and schedule for implementation. Keep in mind that you’ll need to get your IT department involved and onboard as well, so early alignment with that team is critical.
Step 5: Find the Right Partner
Metasys modernization takes a strategic approach and specialized expertise. Working with a partner who also serves as an expert consultant can go a long way toward ensuring the success of your updates while keeping costs in check.
At Albireo Energy, we work with facilities, IT departments, and building stakeholders every step of the way, starting with a thorough audit of your current Metasys platform and its lifecycle while clarifying of your current and future goals. We identify operational and cybersecurity risks on the frontend to make sure they’re addressed, then develop a practical phased upgrade plan that aligns with your resources, budget, goals, and timelines. We make sure the upgrades go smoothly with minimal disruption, then provide ongoing support and optimization once your updated Metasys platform is in place.
What sets Albireo Energy apart is continuity and expertise. The specialists you meet at the outset of your project are the same experts who guide you through implementation. No handoffs and no outsourcing. Just experienced professionals who understand your building, your systems, and your objectives.
Reach out to Albireo Energy today to discuss whether it’s time to bring your aging Metasys system into the future.
