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Metasys alarms as a text message on your on-call phone

At 3 AM, a Metasys alarm text message tells the on-call tech the building, the point and the value. Your ADS or ADX server already emails alarms when a point goes offnormal, so you add one email destination for Welco. Your points, priorities and workstation stay as they are.

Text me my Metasys alarmsBook a demo

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  • Nothing installed on the ADS or ADX
  • One email destination to add
  • No per-user fees

Works by email with

  • Metasys

Published:

A floor plan of Building 1: AHU-07 (return air) goes into alarm, off normal, its room turns orange and Metasys NAE-03 emails the alert. The email reaches Welco and the phone shows: “Welco: [AHU-07] Return air temp 84.6 F, Offnormal / Unacked at 3:47 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.”

Animation: a long Johnson Controls Metasys alert email is trimmed into one short text: "Welco: [AHU-07] Return air temp 84.6 F, Offnormal / Unacked at 3:47 AM. Reply STOP to opt out."

What changes when Metasys alarms become texts

  • The tech knows before the space gets cold

    The building, the point and the value reach the on-call phone. Nobody has to sign in to the Metasys web UI to find out what tripped.

  • Only your urgent priorities ring

    A priority filter on the Welco destination sends the urgent range. Maintenance and low-priority alarms stay on the workstation.

  • Your Metasys setup stays put

    The NAEs, the field controllers and the alarm logic don't change. Alarms are still logged and acked in Metasys.

What you need

Metasys is a BAS, short for building automation system. It is the software that runs a building's heating, cooling, fans and pumps. Its alarm emails work like any other text alerts for building systems.

Most of this setup happens on the Metasys server. Sit down with whoever can sign in to it, often your controls contractor.

  • A Metasys ADS or ADX server that can send email. These are the servers that gather alarms from your building controllers.
  • A Welco account with your business verified. Start free if you are new to Welco.
  • Your night techs and the chief engineer, invited from Welco. Each one joins with their own mobile and replies YES to one confirm text.
  • A short list of the alarm priorities that are truly urgent at night.

Send Metasys alarms to Welco in 5 steps

Menu names change between Metasys releases. Look for the email destination settings on your ADS or ADX server.

  1. Approve the Metasys server as a sender

    Find the From address your Metasys server uses, such as metasys-ads@bas.example.com. Add it to your approved sender list in Welco. Mail from an address you haven't approved is turned away.

  2. Check that the server can send email

    Open the outgoing mail settings on the ADS or ADX. This is SMTP, the way systems send email. If the server already emails alarms to a person, this step is done.

  3. Add your Welco address as a destination

    Create a new email destination and paste your Welco address as the recipient. Give it a plain name, like Welco on-call texts, so the next tech knows what it does.

  4. Filter by alarm priority and type

    Metasys ranks alarms by number, and a lower number is more urgent. Set this destination to send only your urgent range. Routine and maintenance alarms can keep going to email.

    • Pick alarm events only. Audit and status messages don't belong on a phone.
    • Decide if return-to-normal messages should text. Many teams leave them in email.

  5. Trip a safe test alarm

    Turn on Welco's no-send test mode before you test. Then trip an alarm on a spare point, or nudge a limit for a minute. Test mode logs the trimmed text so you can check it before any phone buzzes.

Put Metasys alarms on the right phone today

Sign up, verify your business and add one email destination on your server.

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing

Text me my Metasys alarmsBook a demo

A Metasys space temp alarm, before and after

Metasys alarm emails carry the full object path, the priority and the site name. Welco keeps the building, the room, the value and the time. The tech knows where to walk before opening a laptop.

Alert email from metasys-ads@bas.example.com, subject “Metasys Alarm: Bldg C Room 214 ZN-T Low Limit”. Welco trims it to one text of 90 characters: “Welco: [Bldg C] Room 214 zone temp LOW, 58 F, unacked at 5:20 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.”

Text received: Welco: [Bldg C] Room 214 zone temp LOW, 58 F, unacked at 5:20 AM. Reply STOP to opt out.

Characters279901 credit

Animation: the alert email "Metasys Alarm: Bldg C Room 214 ZN-T Low Limit" is trimmed into one text: "Welco: [Bldg C] Room 214 zone temp LOW, 58 F, unacked at 5:20 AM. Reply STOP to opt out."

An alert rule can also skip messages that say Normal, so only new Metasys alarms reach a phone.

Tips for Metasys alarm texts

A few choices make the texts useful at 3 AM. Each one is a setting in Welco, not a change to Metasys.

  • Send night alarms to the tech on duty

    In the day, a Metasys alarm can text the whole facilities crew. After hours, on-call schedule routing sends it to the one person on duty.

  • Text two people when it matters

    Some alarms need the night tech and the chief engineer. With several phones per alert, both get one copy of the same text.

  • Cut the object path down

    Long Metasys object paths can push a text past one message credit. Trimming each alarm to one text keeps the point name, the value and the time.

  • Calm a burst from one controller

    When a field controller drops offline, Metasys may flag every point under it in an alarm flood event. Welco can cap a burst of alarm texts so the on-call phone stays readable.

Why didn't my Metasys alarm text arrive?

Work through these checks in order. Most fixes take a minute or two.

  • The alarm missed the filter. Check the priority range on the Welco destination, because an alarm outside it stays in Metasys.
  • The server can't reach the mail server. Ask IT whether the ADS or ADX is allowed to send mail out.
  • The From address changed. A new server or an upgrade can change it, so approve the new address too.
  • The phone never confirmed, or it's a landline. Welco's per-text delivery status names the reason in plain English.

Frequently asked questions

Can Metasys send alarm text messages without extra software?

No. Welco uses the alarm email your Metasys server can already send. You add one email destination with your Welco address and approve the server as a sender. Nothing is installed on the ADS, the ADX or your controllers, and the workstation works as it does now.

Do our techs need an app or a Metasys login to read the text?

No. The alarm arrives as a plain text that starts with Welco:, on any mobile phone. Each tech joins from your invite and replies YES once. Signing in to Metasys is only needed to ack the alarm or look deeper.

Will our current Metasys alarm emails keep going?

Yes. Welco is one more email destination, so every recipient you have today keeps getting the same emails. You can run both side by side for a week before anyone relies on the texts.

Does Welco connect to the Metasys network or the ADX?

No. The ADX sends an email out, and that is all Welco receives. There is no remote access to the server, the NAEs or the controllers. Only the server's approved From address can trigger a text, so mail from anyone else is refused.

Can I text only high-priority Metasys alarms?

Yes. Set the priority filter on the Welco destination so only your urgent range goes out. Lower priority alarms can still go to a normal inbox. A Welco alert rule can also skip return-to-normal messages, so the phone only lights up for new problems.

Will a Metasys alarm text show which building the alarm is in?

Yes, as long as the alarm email names it. Metasys emails carry the object path and the site name. Welco keeps the building and point name and drops the rest. Clear point names in Metasys make clearer texts, so a short naming pass pays off.

Can the tech acknowledge a Metasys alarm by replying to the text?

No. A reply does not ack the alarm in Metasys. Your team still acknowledges it at the workstation or in the web UI. Welco emails replies back to the sender and counts them in credits, but a server mailbox rarely gets read. Treat the text as the heads-up.

What does it cost to text Metasys alarms?

You pay no per-user fees and no setup fee, and there is no hardware to buy. A short alarm uses one credit, and a trim rule keeps long object paths from using more. Try it on real Metasys alarms with the 7-day trial and its 15 credits. See Welco pricing for the plans, none of which bill overage.

Put your next Metasys alarm on the on-call phone

Add one email destination on your Metasys server. Welco sends the text.

Text me my Metasys alarmsBook a demo

7-day free trial, 15 message creditsCard required for verificationNo charge for 7 daysEmail reminder before billing