Introduction to Building Services
What are building services?
Building services BS are those equipment or facilities inside a building that provide a
safe, healthy and comfortable condition for those who live, stay or work in it. Broadly
speaking, building services (BS) can be divided into two main categories:
- One category is related to mechanical.
- The other is related to electrical
The history of BS can be in excess of 20 years. With the introduction of new technology,
one may find that inside a building, some “old” and “new” equipment exist. BS personnel
need to know how the old services can exist in terms of function and rules, and at the
same time have an idea of how the new ones function, operate and install.
Major Building Services Installations
Though building services can be divided into two great categories, yet they can further
be sub-divided into sub-groups according to the nature of work:
a) Plumbing and Drainage systems:
These include hot and cold water systems, flushing water system, above ground and
below ground drainage systems, irrigation (in farms) and swimming pools systems.
Some miscellaneous systems include compressed air system, fuel gas system, and
medical gas system.
b) Fire Services systems:
Though these relate with water, they usually stand alone as an independent trade
(mainly due to regulations). These include sprinkler system, fire hydrant and hose
reel system, automatic fire alarm system, gaseous system, smoke extraction system,
staircase pressurisation system, etc.
c) Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning and Refrigeration (HVACR) systems:
The most common system that people are familiar with is air-conditioning and
ventilation systems. Heating system is very rare in warm countries like Hong Kong,
but is common in hospitals and nurseries. Refrigeration system is widely used in food
storage.
d) Electrical Services systems:
These include power supply and distribution systems, emergency power supply
system, lighting system, lightning protection system, lift and escalator system,
building management system (BMS), close circuit television (CCTV) system, private
automatic board exchange (PABX) system, public address (PA) system etc.
Functions and importance of Building Services
1. To provide a safe, healthy and comfortable environment to the occupants.
2. To provide a suitable environment for man, machine and animal to work.
3. To provide a suitable environment for industrial processing.
4. To provide a suitable environment for storing and preserving products and foods.
5. To fulfil the above in energy efficient, cost effective and environmental conscious
manner.
1 Introduction to Building Services 15-16
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In-class Exercise
The class will be divided into four groups. The task of each group is to select ONE of the
major building services system mentioned above and identify any relevant components
found in this campus. The investigation time will be around 15-20 minutes followed by a
short briefing around 5 minutes.
Home Works: Find out the main functions of Electrical and Mechanical Department
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BNM5200 Building Services 1
Building Services system to be inspected: __________________________________
Names of Group members:
Notes:
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1 Introduction to Building Services 15-16
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