ALLENTOWN, Pa. — Iota Communications Inc., a wireless communication and data analytics software company, and the Continental Automated Building Association (CABA) announced Terrence DeFranco as the new chair of the Intelligent Buildings Council (IBC). DeFranco, president and CEO of Iota Communications Inc. and a current IBC vice chair, succeeds Trevor Nightingale, director general, Construction Research Centre, National Research Council of Canada.

IBC works to strengthen the large building automation industry by highlighting innovative, technology-driven research and projects. It was formed in 2001 by CABA specifically to look at opportunities, take strategy action, and monitor initiatives that relate to the integration of systems and automation in the large building sector. Anyone may join IBC, and there are currently 287 industry professionals in the group. Each year, IBC recommends specific projects to be undertaken that promote the next generation of intelligent building technologies and incorporate a holistic approach to optimization of performance and savings. Two CABA IBC landmark projects for the large building sector, Intelligent Buildings and COVID-19 and Intelligent Building Energy Management Systems were recently completed, and the selection process for a 2021 landmark research project is currently underway. IBC is one of three CABA councils, the others being the Connected Home Council (CHC) and the CABA Information Council (CIC).

“I am very honored to have been at the helm of IBC for the past three-and-a-half years,” said  Nightingale. “I benefitted from an incredibly deep bench of vice chairs with Terrence, Harsha Chandrashekar [Honeywell], Bob Allan [Siemon Company], and Robert Lane. I’ve been especially honored to work with these individuals in delivering the IBC to the CABA community.”

“CABA thanks Trevor for his tremendous leadership on behalf of the council — IBC and CABA truly would not be what they are today without his contributions,” said Ron Zimmer, president and CEO of CABA. “The chairmanship of IBC remains in very capable hands as Terrence is a very strong contributor on the CABA board of directors, and he steps into the IBC chair role having been an active vice chair for the past two years.”

“Trevor’s dedication as a chair has made it possible to continue to deliver on the IBC vision while moving the entire CABA organization forward,” said DeFranco. “I am very thankful to Trevor, Ron, the vice chairs, the board of directors, and the entire membership and staff for the great work CABA and the IBC has done in the past and look forward to bringing more value to these very important and impactful initiatives. Enhancing the safety, security, and efficiency of commercial buildings has never been more important than it is now, and I am honored to have the privilege of working with such a distinguished and diverse group of intelligent building professionals. I look forward to continuing the excellent work that has been done to date on behalf of the large building automation industry.”

For more information, visit www.caba.org.