Points schedule and mapping
Agree what the BMS needs to see and control, then map each lighting, emergency and sensor point to a BACnet object, Modbus register or MQTT topic with consistent naming.
BMS and systems integration
Lighting and sensor data on your BMS — even when the kit won't talk.
Integration is where lighting projects usually stall: the systems are commissioned, but the BMS can't see them. We map lighting controls, emergency lighting and sensors onto the building's network over BACnet/IP, Modbus and MQTT — and when off-the-shelf gateways can't do it, we write the interpreter ourselves. That's how a UK central bank's lighting points got onto its BMS.
- BACnet/IP
- Modbus
- MQTT
- MQTT ⇄ BACnet conversion
- Points schedules
- Custom interpreters
What's included
From the field device to the dashboard, proven end to end.
Protocol conversion
Data converted between MQTT, BACnet/IP and Modbus where systems speak different languages — as on an assisted-living scheme in Norway.
Custom interpreters
When no gateway exists for the kit on site, we build the bridge — like the custom interpreter that put a UK central bank's lighting end points onto its BMS.
Fast discovery on site
Our own tool, Nodex, runs BACnet discovery on site in minutes, so we know what's on the network before mapping starts.
End-to-end verification
Every point proven from the field device to the head end and on to the dashboard — not just “the gateway says it's online”.
Using the data
Occupancy, scheduling and metering data pointed at real savings — like sharing lighting occupancy with HVAC, which saved more HVAC energy than the lighting itself used.
The detail
Why lighting–BMS integration stalls, and how to stop it
Modern lighting control systems know a lot about a building: which spaces are occupied, which luminaires have failed, how much energy each area uses, and whether the emergency lighting passed its last test. A building management system can use all of it — but only if the two systems share a protocol and agree on what each point means.
BACnet/IP is the usual common language for building systems, Modbus is still everywhere in plant and metering, and MQTT is increasingly how IoT sensors and newer controllers publish data. A lighting system may speak one, two or none of these natively. Gateways cover the common cases; the rest needs someone who can read the protocol on both sides and write the conversion.
The other half is deciding what's worth integrating. Not every point needs to reach the BMS, and the budget goes further on the data that drives a saving or removes a manual check. We help scope that before the mapping starts.
How a job runs
How an integration job runs.
- 01
Discovery
Survey what's on the network and what each system can expose — using Nodex for BACnet discovery on site.
- 02
Points schedule
Agree the points list, naming and object types with you and the BMS contractor.
- 03
Mapping and conversion
Configure the gateways, or build a custom interpreter where none fits.
- 04
Point-to-point verification
Every point checked field-to-head-end, with values and commands proven in both directions.
- 05
Witnessing
Points witnessed with you and the BMS contractor, so both ends of every point match.
- 06
Dashboard and handover
Data proven on the dashboard, with the as-built points list and documentation handed over.
Experience
Where we've done it before.
Central bank BMS integration
Integrated lighting end points into a UK central bank's BMS through a custom interpreter written to bridge kit that wouldn't otherwise talk.
Occupancy-led HVAC
Fed lighting occupancy data to a municipal building's HVAC over BACnet, so heating and ventilation follow real presence instead of a timer. The HVAC energy saved was more than the lighting itself used.
Assisted-living scheme
Commissioned points into a municipal management system for an assisted-living scheme, converting data between MQTT and BACnet/IP so the two systems could speak.
Questions
Frequently asked questions.
- Which protocols do you integrate?
- BACnet/IP, Modbus and MQTT, including conversion between them — for example MQTT ⇄ BACnet. The lighting itself is usually DALI or a manufacturer's own controls; we bring its data onto whichever building protocol the BMS uses.
- What if our lighting system has no BACnet gateway?
- That's the problem we like most. We write custom interpreters when off-the-shelf kit won't talk — it's how a UK central bank's lighting points got onto a BMS that wouldn't otherwise accept them.
- Do you work with our BMS contractor?
- Yes — integration is a shared job. We agree the points schedule with the BMS contractor and deliver the lighting side to it, so both ends match at witnessing.
- Can lighting occupancy data really save HVAC energy?
- Yes. On a municipal building in Norway, lighting occupancy was fed to the HVAC system over BACnet, so heating and ventilation followed real presence instead of a timer. The HVAC energy saved was more than the lighting itself used.
Related services
Often on the same project.
Lighting controls commissioningLighting controls and DALI commissioningEngineer-led DALI and lighting controls commissioning: addressing, groups, scenes, sensors and point-to-point testing through to a signed handover.Read moreEmergency and central batteryEmergency lighting and central battery commissioningEmergency lighting and central battery system commissioning to BS 5266: functional and duration testing, witnessing, and the records inspectors expect.Read more
Get in touch
Got a site that needs commissioning?
Tell us the systems, the sector and the programme — we'll tell you straight whether we're the right fit and what it takes to sign it off clean.
- hello@tps505.com
- Coverage
- UK-wide and international
- Insured
- Public liability