Plant that runs to occupancy
Schedules, setbacks and occupancy inputs stop lighting and HVAC running outside trading or working hours, which is where most commercial energy waste sits.
Derby · BMS, control panels and process
Commercial And IndustrialAutomation In Derby, BuiltOn Control Panel Discipline
Building management, lighting and HVAC control, control panels and production line systems — designed, installed and commissioned by an engineer who spent years building bespoke food-handling control systems for sites worldwide.
16+ years across industrial control and building services · £10m public and employers' liability · RAMS issued for any project on request
16+ years
Domestic, commercial and industrial experience
Full Scope
NAPIT registered for all aspects of electrical work
6-year
NAPIT-backed workmanship guarantee on qualifying installs
£10m
Public and employers' liability cover
Free
Initial consultation, no obligation
The service
The same discipline whether it is an office floor or a production line
Commercial and industrial automation covers building management systems that bring lighting, HVAC, access and energy monitoring under one control platform; bespoke control panel design and build; and process and machinery control on production lines. We design and commission on Loxone, Trend, KNX and Schneider depending on what the site already runs and what the client's maintenance team can support.
Before founding the company, Ross Hutchinson spent years designing, building and commissioning bespoke control panels and conveyor systems for food-handling plants installed on sites around the world. That work leaves you with habits — schematics that match the panel, terminals labelled to the drawing, sequences proved before handover — that carry directly into commercial building services.
The practical difference for a client is what happens at commissioning. A system is not finished when the equipment is installed; it is finished when every sequence, interlock and alarm has been demonstrated to work under real conditions, and the documentation matches what is physically in the enclosure.
Who this is for
- Offices and workplaces wanting lighting, HVAC and access on one management system
- Retail and hospitality premises needing scheduled trading modes and energy control
- Landlords and facilities managers with plant that fails silently and no reporting
- Manufacturers needing bespoke control panels designed, built and commissioned
- Production lines requiring conveyor, sequencing and machinery control work
- Sites with legacy BMS installations nobody local is able to modify or support
What it costs to leave it
Plant that fails quietly costs more than plant that fails loudly
The most expensive faults on a commercial site are the ones nobody notices. Heating and cooling fighting each other in the same zone for a whole winter. A ventilation plant running twenty-four hours because a schedule was never revised after the occupancy changed. Lighting running at full output in areas that have not been occupied since a floor was reorganised. None of these trigger a call-out; they simply appear as an energy bill everyone has stopped questioning.
Undocumented systems make it worse. When the original installer is gone and the schematics do not match the enclosure, every change becomes an investigation. Facilities teams stop adjusting anything for fear of breaking something, controls get bypassed to keep production running, and within a few years the building is being run manually in spite of the system installed to run it automatically.
On the industrial side the cost is measured in downtime. A panel with no labelling, no spares strategy and no clear sequence documentation turns a straightforward component failure into hours of diagnostic work while a line stands idle. The mitigation is not more equipment — it is design and documentation discipline applied at build stage.
Mistakes we get called out to fix
- Schedules left on installer defaults years after the occupancy pattern changed
- Heating and cooling active in the same zone with no interlock between them
- Panels built without labelling, schematics or an as-built drawing set
- Alarms configured to nobody, so faults are discovered by occupants instead of staff
- Controls bypassed as a temporary fix and never reinstated
- Proprietary systems specified with no local capability to modify or support them
How the job runs
A fixed sequence, so nothing
gets decided on the fly
01
Site survey and brief
We review the existing plant, controls and documentation, understand occupancy and production requirements, and establish what the system must actually achieve.
02
Design (chargeable)
Control philosophy, points schedule, panel schematics, general arrangement drawings, interlocks and alarm strategy — issued for comment before anything is built.
03
Build and install
Panels built to the schematics with labelled terminals, then installed with containment, field wiring, sensors and actuators to the agreed points schedule.
04
Commission and prove
Every point verified, every sequence and interlock demonstrated under real conditions, alarms tested to their recipients, and set points tuned rather than left at defaults.
05
Document and support
As-built drawings, panel schedules, operating instructions and staff training handed over, with remote and in-person maintenance available afterwards.
What you actually get
Measurable outcomes, not adjectives
Faults reported, not discovered
Alarms and runtime logging surface a failing component before occupants complain, turning an emergency into a planned maintenance visit.
Panels your team can work on
Labelled terminals, matching schematics and a sensible spares strategy mean a component failure is a short swap rather than a long diagnostic exercise.
Evidence for energy reporting
Zone-level runtime and consumption logging gives you data to justify changes and demonstrate the savings afterwards.
Work around your operation
Installation and commissioning phased around trading hours, shift patterns and shutdown windows, with RAMS issued for any project on request.
Fully insured contractor
£10m public liability, £10m employers' liability and £1m professional indemnity, with NAPIT Full Scope registration behind the electrical work.
In detail
BMS platforms, panel building and process control
Commercial and industrial work splits into three areas that share the same engineering discipline. Below is what each involves and how we approach it on sites across Derby, Derbyshire and Nottinghamshire.
Building management systems
A BMS is worth having when it reduces running hours and reports faults. We design around those two outcomes rather than around the maximum number of points a platform can address.
- Loxone, Trend, KNX and Schneider design, installation and commissioning
- Lighting zoning with daylight linking, occupancy detection and trading schedules
- HVAC, AHU and heat pump control with setbacks and optimum start
- Access control and door hardware integrated with occupancy and alarm states
- Energy and runtime metering logged per zone or per plant item
- Remote access for facilities teams and for our own diagnostic support
Control panel design and build
Panels are built to drawings, not from memory. Every terminal is labelled to the schematic and the as-built set is handed over, because that is what makes the panel maintainable in five years' time.
- Bespoke panel design with schematics and general arrangement drawings
- Distribution, motor control and PLC panels for plant and process
- Correctly rated protection, isolation and emergency stop arrangements
- Labelled terminals, wire numbering and a documented spares list
- Thermal management and ingress protection appropriate to the environment
- Factory testing before delivery, then site commissioning against the sequence
Process and machinery control
Production line experience is the origin of the business. Conveyor sequencing, interlocks and safety circuits are designed so the line fails safe and restarts predictably.
- Conveyor and handling line control, sequencing and interlocking
- Machinery power, isolation and control connections
- Sensor, actuator and drive integration with clear fault reporting
- Safety circuits and emergency stop systems designed and proved at commissioning
- Modifications to existing lines phased into planned shutdown windows
Working on live commercial sites
Most commercial work happens in a building that cannot stop operating. Planning the phasing and the isolations properly is as much of the job as the engineering itself.
- RAMS issued for any project on request and reviewed before work starts
- Out-of-hours and phased working to avoid disrupting trading or production
- Temporary supplies and staged isolation planned with your site team
- Coordination with M&E consultants, main contractors and facilities providers
- Handover documentation and training so your team can operate the system
Before you enquire
Commercial & industrial questions,
answered straight
How much does a commercial automation or BMS project cost?
Every site differs in plant, points count and access, so we do not publish prices. The initial consultation and site review are free, and design is chargeable only once you decide to progress. A written quotation always precedes commitment.
How long does a project take?
A single-floor lighting and HVAC control project is typically a few weeks including design, installation and commissioning. Panel build and process work depends on lead times and shutdown windows, and we programme it with your site team.
Can you work with our existing BMS?
In most cases yes. We work with Loxone, Trend, KNX and Schneider systems and will assess what is installed before recommending extension, partial replacement or a full change.
Will the work disrupt trading or production?
It is planned not to. Work is phased around trading hours, shift patterns and shutdown windows, with temporary supplies and staged isolations agreed in advance.
Do you provide RAMS and insurance documentation?
Yes. RAMS are issued for any project on request, and we hold £10m public liability, £10m employers' liability and £1m professional indemnity cover.
What documentation do we receive at handover?
As-built schematics, panel and points schedules, the control philosophy, operating instructions and training for your staff — so the system remains maintainable without us.
How long does a control panel last?
A well-built panel in a suitable environment serves for many years; contactors, drives and control components are the wearing items. We supply a spares list at handover so critical items can be held on site.
Do you offer emergency or out-of-hours support?
Emergency and out-of-hours support is available on request for commercial and automation clients, and remote diagnostics often resolve issues without an engineer travelling.
What guarantee applies to commercial work?
Qualifying installation work carries a 6-year NAPIT-backed workmanship guarantee, with a minimum one-year guarantee on other work, plus maintenance packages beyond that.
Which areas do you cover for commercial projects?
Derby, Nottingham, Burton upon Trent, Chesterfield, Sheffield and the wider East Midlands. Commercial and automation projects frequently travel further than our domestic radius — ask if you are outside it.
Related services
Where we work
Derby · Nottingham · Duffield · Belper · Burton upon Trent · Sheffield · Ilkeston · Long Eaton and the wider East Midlands. See areas covered, read more about the company or return to the homepage.
Get the plant running
to the hours you operate
Book a free site review and we will tell you where your controls are costing you money and what it would take to correct it.
NAPIT Full Scope · Official Loxone Partner · 6-year workmanship guarantee on qualifying installations · £10m public liability