EMAIL INTERVIEW – Ken Smyers and Ken Sinclair

Ken Smyers, VP and Co-Owner of DMS Controls Group, LLC, in Pittsburgh, has over 30 years of experience in the HVAC, Building Automation, and Controls Industry and is also Co-Founder of the ControlTrends Awards, which was established to recognize the superstars and heroes of the HVAC and Building Automation Industries.  Ken is also very much involved with Eric Stromquist and ControlTrends.org, a leading internet source for HVAC and Controls information.

Sinclair:  ControlTrends covered the first Project Haystack meeting in Chattanooga, TN, Apr 29-May 2, 2013. ControlTrends has covered a lot of these industry events; tell us about the unique Project Haystack experience.

Smyers:  A video is worth a thousand words -- In preparation for this interview, I re-watched the 23 minute ControlTrends video that captured the spirit of Project Haystack, as J2 Innovation’s Jason Briggs and Scott Muench present (live on stage) one of the most entertaining and informative “Just Works” demonstrations ever attempted.  There were a lot of curious technology suppliers, systems integrators, and forward-thinking end users watching, and Jason and Scott pulled if off -- it was a resounding success and delivered Project Haystack’s core message about the new way to streamline data.

Sinclair:  What were the important take-aways from the first Project Haystack?

Smyers:  A common standard to aggregate and normalize the sensor, device, controller, and equipment data inside of buildings represents one of the most important and difficult challenges still facing our industry, but the rewards to everyone involved are great.  There was a feeling that Project Haystack was going to spearhead one of the solutions to those challenges, and was rapidly developing the ecosystem to sustain its efforts.

[an error occurred while processing this directive]Sinclair:  Is ControlTrends going to Project Haystack 2015?

Smyers:  Absolutely! Industry collaborations on the scale of Project Haystack are driving the next major changes and adaptations within our industry – and with the active participation of so many talented people and vested stakeholders, it is vital to stay connected with Project Haystack and its community. Reviewing the 2015 Project Haystack Keynote Speakers, the PointView attendees list, the participating sponsors, and the return of the Interoperable Blues Band (IBB), Project Haystack 2015 looks to be even more rewarding than the first event.