BACnet/SC Plugfest

MBS and Delta Controls invite manufacturers to a virtual plugfest with BACnet/SC

BACnet Secure Connect

Joint network for testing with Secure Connect is now online and permanently available to device developers free of charge

A test environment for secure communication with BACnet/SC, which was set up on the initiative of Delta Controls with MBS GmbH, is now available to all manufacturers. BACnet, the open standard for data exchange in building automation, was expanded last year with the Secure Connect (BACnet/SC) security infrastructure. Since then, this has been the first German cooperation to offer encrypted data transmission via the Internet for a distributed test network. 

Multi-vendor communication with BACnet/SC

"We would like to invite all manufacturers to connect to our virtual platform free of charge," says Dusko Lukanic-Simpson, Managing Director at Delta Controls Germany GmbH in Leinfelden-Echterdingen. "Our aim is to set up multi-vendor communication that can demonstrate to property operators that data exchange with BACnet/SC works well and securely."

The impetus for this collaboration came from the consistent use of the new security infrastructure: Delta Controls linked test setups of its own building management software enteliWEB with BACnet/SC at its various company locations. They then looked for manufacturers who were already using the new security infrastructure and found what they were looking for at MBS. As their UBR 01 universal router, gateways and software products are already equipped with BACnet/SC, this led to another uncomplicated cooperation after several successful projects in the past.

In focus: Cooperation

The result is a virtual platform based on the BACnet/SC connectivity mechanism. It is used by both companies to display the interaction of the integrated Delta and MBS products and to check the security of data communication. "The development of Secure Connect, which was very important to both of us, made this cooperation possible in the first place," emphasizes Nils-Gunnar Fritz, Managing Director of MBS GmbH in Krefeld. "Because now it is possible to exchange BACnet data via the Internet in an authorized, authenticated and encrypted manner."

The two BACnet/SC pioneers welcome any manufacturer who would like to accompany them on this path and are happy to make their network available. After all, the fact that the open bus protocol guarantees smooth processes is not just a technological aspect for them. "Interoperability means exchanging information in order to solve problems together. It's a philosophy that focuses on collaboration," emphasizes Lukanic-Simpson.

Implement BACnet/SC now

This initiative has come at the right time. Anyone who projects the rather long-term innovation cycles in building automation onto the introduction of Secure Connect is underestimating the pressure to act that is being fueled by current trends such as cloud services or the Internet of Things. "Our practical example shows: BACnet/SC works," emphasizes Fritz. "There is now a network that can be used as a test system regardless of location, as well as the corresponding tools. Implementation can now begin."