This year’s theme for Controls-Con – The Dawn of a New Era – as technology changes so does the BAS industry and with the new capabilities of IP Cloud connected systems, we are entering a new era of building controls with the digitization of everything, utilization of mobile devices, cyber security, IP networking and now enter AI. We can all see a new industry is born from the old and at this year’s Controls-Con we found out about this new world, and so much more. Not only did we do this program live, we recorded it and are giving it away to anyone who wants to watch, check out our YouTube channel and view our full image gallery in our Controls-Con 2023 Facebook Album.
We started our conference with Pre-Con sessions led by Cochrane Supply’s own Nicole Conklin and Greg Fitzpatrick. Held in the 16th floor event space at One Campus Martius in Detroit from 8:00AM to 1:00pm, with over 20 different industry experts, the event sold out two weeks prior with over 300 in attendance. The most frequent feedback we received was that our pre-con session wasn’t long enough, as we left the audience thirsty for more leading into the next two days of Controls-Con.
Greg’s session unveiled the development of his SmartBuildingDesign.com, a resource site for network designers and system integrators. Greg’s panel of industry experts revealed the truth behind new technology trends, and how they affect the projects going on today. We were grateful for the participation of representatives from Bedrock Detroit and AGM sharing in-depth knowledge of how these companies are navigating the evolution of smart building design.
Nicole’s session, Advancing Technology Track, gave our vendors a chance to show off their latest and greatest technology with a twist, they had to do a live demo of it in front of a live audience. While most were a little nervous, we didn’t have to make a blooper video and they all did a great job!
Day 2 of Controls-Con featured our main keynote session to a packed crowd at the Motor City Casino in Detroit, Michigan. Our keynotes spoke about the tech future for our industry, their company, new products, and new services. The challenge of sharing a stage with other manufacturers helped force some very revealing new tech product plans they are working on. We were certainly surprised at how far ahead they are thinking, and impressed by how quickly some of them are moving towards these new technological goals.
Jim Young – Realcomm
Tom Daenzer – Belimo
Bill Schwebel – Johnson Controls
Mike Mitchell – Cochrane Supply
Etrit Demaj – KODE Labs
Victor Abelairas – Tridium
Martin Villeneuve – Distech Controls
Jacob Fenley – Cochrane Supply
Day 3 of Controls-Con featured two separate breakout sessions: a Business Track for sales, engineers, and users; and a Technology Track for programmers ONLY. Leading the Tech Track, Cochrane Supply’s Mike Mitchell put together an awesome team of experienced experts. Each shared a best practice, tips & tricks, and answered tough “Stump the Chump” questions from the audience.
The Business Track opened with a panel that featured a rational and encouraging look into the opportunities that the ESG and sustainability movement is having on our industry. The second panel discussion dove deep into the cloud, giving the audience a look into how our industry is navigating towards cloud-hosting vs. on-prem solutions. Our final panel was the Legends Series panel, getting up close and personal with some of the legends of the industry who have experienced first-hand the various eras of the BAS industry, and their look at the future as we enter the dawn of a new era.
Lauren Scott – Acuity Brands
John Guardiola – Bedrock Detroit
Craig Stevenson – AUROS Group
Raneem Shammas – Modern Niagara
Scott Cochrane – Cochrane Supply
Brian Oswald – CBRE
Greg Fitzpatrick – Cochrane Supply
Donny Walker – Newcomb & Boyd
Stephen Holicky – Tridium
Martin Villeneuve – Distech Controls
Scott Cochrane – Cochrane Supply
Ed Merwin – Tridium
Chris Lane – Johnson Controls
Mike Keller – Honeywell
Eric Stromquist – ControlTrends
Gary Weber – Belimo
Martin Villeneuve – Distech Controls
