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Technology Stocks : Year 2000 (Y2K) Embedded Systems & Infrastructure Problem -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: John Mansfield who wrote (371)	5/12/1998 5:25:00 PM
From: John Mansfield	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 618

[HVAC] 'Y2K glitches could turn buildings into ghost towns ' ' Douglas Robson Business Times Staff Writer (San Francisco Business Times) .... "It's anything dealing with two digits," noted Mark Ancevic, global program director for Minnesota-based Honeywell Home & Building Control, one of the nation's largest energy management companies. Most glitches, if they happen, will likely fall into the annoying category, Ancevic and others said. For example, an automated maintenance system might send out building crews to fix errors that haven't occurred, or put lighting schedules out of whack. On the other end of the spectrum, it could disable sensitive fire and security systems, he said. In most buildings, three central platforms are at stake: software, hardware and embedded systems. PC-based software typically automates some building functions. Hardware controlling LAN (local area networks) and WAN (wide area networks) systems may also be date-sensitive. But these are generally easier to correct, often with off-the-shelf remedies or newer versions of the same systems, property professionals said. While software programs have received the lion's share of media attention, only recently has the public considered the potential problem posed by embedded chips -- tiny, ubiquitous microprocessors that run appliances such as VCRs and cellular phones, said BOMA's Jawer. The same chips control an entire spectrum of automated systems with myriad building functions. "People are waking up to the fact that this is an embedded systems issue, and not just a software issue," Jawer said. BOMA estimates that between 5 percent and 20 percent of embedded systems could fail to function properly when the date rolls over to the next century. Defective chips will have to be retrofitted. BankAmerica Corp. will spend $6.5 million in 1998 -- and significant employee-hours -- to check its worldwide operations, which encompass 40 million square feet in 40 countries. Steven Jeffrey, BofA's vice president of corporate real estate, said the major challenge is locating and piecing together the various systems. "You have to put on your Sherlock Holmes hat to find where components are placed," he said. "Building systems are anywhere and everywhere, and they're hard to get your arms around." The job of ascertaining whether or not all "firmware" in a facility's automated building system is Year-2000 compliant is likely to be difficult, time-consuming and frustrating, he said. Unless it's very old or very new, much will have to be visually inspected. amcity.com