California Baptist University Reduces Energy Costs While Elevating Campus Comfort
- Thanks to Venstar’s Skyport Cloud Services and Colortouch Thermostats-
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CBU Streamlines Campus Comfort with Venstar ColorTouch and Skyport Cloud
Results and Analytics
Reduced
energy costs
Indoor
Comfort
1,000 Thermostats
53 Buildings
Remotely Manage HVAC Systems Across an Expanding Campus
Eric Taylor is the Director of HVAC, Energy & Controls at California Baptist University (CBU), a private Christian university located in Riverside, California. CBU’s 162-acre campus includes 53 buildings ranging from classrooms and office spaces to residence halls and sports facilities. With nearly 12,000 students and 3,000 staff members relying on consistent comfort, Taylor needed a solution that could help him remotely manage up to 1,000 HVAC units.
His goal was to standardize HVAC management across the campus, reduce energy costs, and ensure reliable comfort—all from a single dashboard accessible on his desktop computer or mobile device. He also wanted to automate scheduling to accommodate weekday, weekend, and holiday usage, while having the flexibility to make campus-wide adjustments instantly.
Solution
Venstar ColorTouch and Skyport Cloud
To meet these demands, Taylor deployed Venstar ColorTouch commercial thermostats paired with the Skyport Cloud Service.
The thermostats were easy to install and offered robust features, including password protection and setpoint limiting to prevent tampering.
Objectives:
- Remote Management: Control up to 1,000 thermostats across the 162-acre campus from one dashboard.
- Energy Efficiency: Centralized control reduces energy usage.
- Security: Password-protected thermostats with setpoint limiting preventing misuse.
- Automation: 365-day scheduling optimizes year-round use.
- System Longevity: Smart control preserves HVAC equipment health.
“Venstar's Skyport Cloud is a cost-effective energy management solution, giving us control like a high-end automation system but without the big price.”
Eric Taylor, Director of HVAC, Energy & Controls, California Baptist University
Venstar’s free Skyport Cloud Services allow users of Venstar’s Wi-Fi thermostats to use Venstar’s free Skyport Mobile App on their Apple iOS and Android mobile devices or directly from the Web to instantly access and control multiple thermostats at numerous locations from virtually anywhere.
Skyport
ColorTouch
ColorTouch Commercial models offer 365-day programming or can be used as nonprogrammable thermostats. They include security features and setpoint limiting. ColorTouch can remotely control, monitor or average temperatures with remote sensors.
Skyport
ColorTouch
Powered by Venstar's Skyport Cloud and ColorTouch Thermostats
At California Baptist University, Venstar’s Skyport Cloud is the backbone of campus-wide HVAC management, giving facilities staff the ability to remotely oversee up to 1,000 thermostats across 53 buildings from a single dashboard. With Skyport, Director of HVAC, Energy & Controls Eric Taylor and his team can monitor and adjust temperatures in real time from a desktop or mobile device, streamlining operations and avoiding unnecessary trips across the 162-acre campus.
The system works hand in hand with Venstar’s ColorTouch commercial thermostats, which are easy to install and simple for staff and students to use. Featuring password protection and setpoint limiting, the thermostats give limited local flexibility students and staff can adjust a few degrees while Skyport ensures that global settings and efficiency goals remain in place.
Together, Skyport Cloud and ColorTouch thermostats provide CBU with the insight and control needed to balance comfort with cost savings, ensuring reliable HVAC performance in classrooms, offices, residence halls, and athletic facilities.
- Centralized Remote Access: Facilities staff manage all thermostats through Skyport, eliminating building-by-building walkthroughs.
- Real-Time System Monitoring: Skyport provides instant visibility into HVAC performance, helping detect issues early and reduce energy waste.
- Smart Local Control: ColorTouch thermostats allow secure, limited adjustments for comfort, while Skyport enforces campus-wide efficiency.
About Skyport
Venstar’s free Skyport Cloud Services allow users of Venstar’s Wi-Fi thermostats to use Venstar’s free Skyport Mobile App on their Apple iOS and Android mobile devices or directly from the Web to instantly access and control multiple thermostats at numerous locations.
About ColorTouch
ColorTouch Commercial models offer 365-day programming or can be used as nonprogrammable thermostats. They include security features and setpoint limiting. ColorTouch can remotely control, monitor or average temperatures with the remote sensor.
About California Baptist University
Located in Riverside, California Baptist University is a private, faith-based university offering undergraduate and graduate programs across diverse fields of study. With a mission to blend academic excellence and spiritual growth, CBU prepares students to live their purpose with integrity, leadership, and service. The university’s supportive community fosters intellectual curiosity, global engagement, and personal development, equipping graduates to impact the world with compassion, innovation, and faith-driven values.
Powered by Venstar's Skyport Cloud and ColorTouch Thermostats
At California Baptist University, Venstar’s Skyport Cloud is the backbone of campus-wide HVAC management, giving facilities staff the ability to remotely oversee up to 1,000 thermostats across 53 buildings from a single dashboard. With Skyport, Director of HVAC, Energy & Controls Eric Taylor and his team can monitor and adjust temperatures in real time from a desktop or mobile device, streamlining operations and avoiding unnecessary trips across the 162-acre campus.
The system works hand in hand with Venstar’s ColorTouch commercial thermostats, which are easy to install and simple for staff and students to use. Featuring password protection and setpoint limiting, the thermostats give limited local flexibility students and staff can adjust a few degrees while Skyport ensures that global settings and efficiency goals remain in place.
Together, Skyport Cloud and ColorTouch thermostats provide CBU with the insight and control needed to balance comfort with cost savings, ensuring reliable HVAC performance in classrooms, offices, residence halls, and athletic facilities.
- Centralized Remote Access: Facilities staff manage all thermostats through Skyport, eliminating building-by-building walkthroughs.
- Real-Time System Monitoring: Skyport provides instant visibility into HVAC performance, helping detect issues early and reduce energy waste.
- Smart Local Control: ColorTouch thermostats allow secure, limited adjustments for comfort, while Skyport enforces campus-wide efficiency.
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Overall Results:
By standardizing on Venstar’s Skyport Cloud Services and ColorTouch thermostats, California Baptist University gained campus-wide efficiency, control, and peace of mind:
- Reduced Energy Costs: Precise scheduling and centralized management cut unnecessary energy usage across 53 buildings.
- Remote Access at Scale: Facilities staff can manage up to 1,000 thermostats from a single platform—no manual building checks required.
- Consistent Comfort: Nearly 12,000 students and 3,000 staff members benefit from reliable, tamper-resistant HVAC control.
- Smarter Scheduling: 365-day programming automatically adjusts for weekends, holidays, and Daylight Savings, reducing oversight burden.
- Extended Equipment Life: Smarter energy management helps preserve critical HVAC equipment across the 162-acre campus.
- Enterprise-Level Control, Simplified: Global adjustments can be made instantly, ensuring efficiency without sacrificing flexibility.
About
Venstar, founded in 1992 and based in Southern California, designs and builds a broad variety of innovative thermostats with over 10 million units installed.
Venstar’s Skyport Cloud service provides businesses with a secure and private, powerful cloud service for command and control of HVAC systems from anywhere in the world.
The company’s Surveyor Energy Management System enables retailers, restaurant chains, and other multi-location businesses to remotely monitor, manage, and control energy consumption, while reducing maintenance expenses. Currently, Surveyor is used to control over 100,000 HVAC systems and building lighting in more than 30,000 retail locations across North America.
Venstar LLC is a wholly owned business unit of Daikin Comfort Technologies North America, Inc. (Daikin), a subsidiary of Daikin Industries, Ltd. (DIL), the largest manufacturer of HVAC systems worldwide.
“When it comes to support, ease of use and functionality, nothing even comes close to Venstar’s Skyport and ColorTouch.”
Eric Taylor, Director of HVAC, Energy & Controls, California Baptist University
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