Addendum j to BACnet-2004, approved for first public review, adds physical access control to the areas of building automation supported by BACnet. This is the result of a four-year effort by the Life Safety and Security Working Group, led by convener David Ritter and comprised of representatives from both the HVAC and physical security industries from around the globe. Addendum j completes the extensions which started with Addendum f, the Access Door Object Type, now on its way to publication. The review period for Addendum j will be extended to 60 days to allow members of the access control community extra time to review the addendum. (A draft copy of the addendum is available here.)

Addendum g, a new means for securing BACnet network communications, provides part of the base on which Addendum j is built. Developed by the Network Security Working Group and entering second public review with only minor changes, Addendum g draws on significant advances in encryption and authentication technologies. Addendum g will also be required for the access control extensions in Addendum j. "Trial implementations are underway," notes working group convener Dave Robin.

Addendum i, approved for its first public review, will add support for lighting control systems to the BACnet standard. Lighting Applications Working Group convener Steve Karg noted that the extensions will support both sophisticated and simple lighting systems.

The BACnet committee continues its work on a broad range of items including developing profiles for VAV controllers and VFDs, incorporating wireless capabilities, accommodating and adopting new IP technologies; and extending conformance testing to cover new BACnet capabilities.