Nailor Industries is the only Air Distribution Company that manufactures a unique and comprehensive line of products essential for a well designed HVAC system.
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Founded in 1985, Phoenix Controls is a recognized leader in the design and manufacture of precision airflow control systems for use in critical room environments.
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New AUNI2 Architectural Aluminum Plaque Ceiling Diffuser with option for MRI Room Applications
Nailor Model ‘AUNI2’ Square Plaque Ceiling Diffusers have been specially designed to provide both the unobtrusive appearance required for architectural excellence and engineering performance. The diffuser delivers a tight 360° radial horizontal pattern allowing high turn down ratios with no dumping. The AUNI2 diffusers provide stable diffusi
on and mixing patterns under
constant and changing load conditions and are particularly suitable for variable air volume systems.
Constructed of aluminum (with corrosion-resistant steel bracketry as standard), the diffusers feature a stamped, one-piece outer cone, which eliminates mitered corners and the die-formed curves provide consistent quality and performance. The inner core features a plaque style face with a hemmed edge for strength and a clean appearance, offering an aesthetically pleasing design that is virtually flush with the ceiling line. The face panel is held in place by four hook corner posts that are mechanically secured and positively engage into slots in the backpan. The panel can be
removed from the backpan for diffuser installation and to provide access to an optional inlet damper. The design eliminates welding and assures a clean, smooth, blemish free painted finish under all lighting conditions.
Optionally, 100% aluminum construction is available for MRI room compatibility.
The AUNI2 may also be used as a ducted or non-ducted return air diffuser which provides a harmoni
ous appearance that compliments the supply diffuser aesthetic.
AUNI2 diffusers are available to suit multiple applications such as Lay-in T-Bar as well as surface mount where hard duct connection is required and Drywall/Plaster frame recommended for flexible duct connection and ceiling access. A variety of neck sizes are available to suit your system design. The collar is a full 1 1/4″ (32) in height for easy, secure connection. Standard finish is AW Appliance White (optional finishes are available).
AUNI2 diffusers compliment any decor, blending beautifully with virtually any architectural style or requirement.
Click here for the full product overview – Nailor AUNI2
New Vendor website – NailorNailor Industries, Inc. is excited to announce the release of our new website, optimized for desktop, tablet, and smartphone! www.nailor.com
3 simple ways to locate Nailor products:
Products: Drill down to reach your desired product by filtering through various categories.
Knowledge Center: See all drawings by Drawing Type arranged by Model Series.
Product/Model Search: An auto-complete search feature for all Products and Models.
Enhancements include:
1. When viewed in Chrome, 3D views of numerous models are available (updated regularly!): 1600 Series Extruded Aluminum Louvers All models 1700 Series Formed Steel Louvers 1704D, 1706D, 1704AD Ceiling Diffusers: UNI, RUNI, 66UNI, 7500, 6500, TWR, RNS, RNS3, 4330
2. Knowledge Center features ALL Nailor Literature: Product Overview Brochures, Product Flyers, Product Spotlights, Ad Slicks & more!
3. Rep Locator: All new interactive Rep Locator – click the Map or use the search box!
4. Nailor Airwaves, Social Media & Nailor Newsletter! Find the Nailor Airwaves blog under the Corporate tab, follow us on Social Media, and sign-up for our new Email Newsletter.
As always, your comments and feedback are greatly appreciated!marketing@nailor.com
Single Point Integration/Vantage System Management
Room Manager Sales Release
Facility staffs have increasingly diverse needs affecting their choice of a BMS to their preference for specific protocols to use. IT departments play a more prevalent role in the decision making process since they are mandated to ensure any solution deployed meets strict cyber security requirements. Flexible integration architecture is a necessity when integrating room controls to front-end systems.
To address the resulting complexity of these requirements, Phoenix Controls developed Vantage Room Manager. This software package meets customer’s varying needs while rounding out your Vantage system integration product portfolio. When deployed with Room Integrators or Room Controllers, Room Manager provides Vantage system-wide management features and a single IP network configuration that functionally replaces MacroServers.
Feature Highlights
Functionally replaces MacroServer to support single IP integration requirements to BMS.
Consolidates all Room Integrator (RMI) and Room Controller (RMC) databases into a single system database for integration to BMS.
When integration is implemented directly from RMIs and RMCs (distributed integration requiring multiple IP addresses provided by the site), Room Manager can be deployed to provide management functions for the devices.
Allows local station backups and restores for RMIs and RMCs.
Room Manager is software only and can be installed on any computer or virtual machine that your end user prefers, as long as it meets the minimum specifications listed on the data sheet.
For important information about availability, ordering, pricing, and licensing, read the full Sales Bulletin on the Partner website.
The new EZvav Digital Controls by Nailor bring simplicity to the Variable Air Volume (VAV) terminal unit market. Designed for both stand-alone applications and for integration with BACnet building automation systems, EZvav are precise P+I pressure independent VAV controllers that are pre-configured for standard control sequences that cover the vast majority of terminal unit applications.
All terminal units with electric or hot water heating coils are supplied as standard with a DAT Discharge Air Temperature control sensor that can limit the discharge air temperature to a maximum of 15°F above room set point, helping compliance with ASHRAE Standard 62.1 and 55. Field commissioning and balancing can all be performed using the standard digital display room temperature sensor, which has an intuitive menu driven setup. No laptop, expansion modules, communication interface or software is required.
FEATURES & BENEFITS:
Integrated controller/actuator/transducer
Factory mounted and wired for new building applications
Ideal for retrofitting and upgrading pneumatic and analog controls to a digital solution
Room temperature sensor (thermostat) options include Digital Display, Occupancy Sensor and compact Rotary Dial models
Remote fan volume adjustment from 0 – 100% for EPIC ECM fan powered terminals
Simple menu driven setup
BACnet BMS network integration ready
Application Control Sequences Include:
Single Duct VAV or CAV Cooling only and Heat/Cool Changeover
Single Duct VAV Cooling with reheat
Dual Duct Variable Volume or Constant Volume control
Series Fan Powered Constant Volume with/without supplementary heat
Parallel Fan Powered Variable Volume with/without supplementary heat
Heating Control Options:
Binary (up to 3 stages of electric heat), Modulating (0 – 10 Vdc analog) or Floating heat control.
Native BACnet
All models are BACnet Applications Specific Controllers that are ready to connect to a BACnet MS/TP network. Device instance, MAC address and baud rate are set from an STE-8001W36 without special software.
EZ to order
Nailor Representatives’ Automated Pricing Program (RAPP) features EZ quick select options for control sequences and room temperature sensor options based on terminal unit type and application requirement.
EZ to install
For field retrofit applications, the EZvav controller is mounted within a terminal unit controls enclosure and directly coupled to the damper shaft. The flow sensor, power supply, heat and temperature sensors are then connected. The EZvav controller automatically detects them without programming or software tools.
EZ to setup, commission and balance
All options can be set by using an STE-8001W36 sensor as a technician’s service tool or installed as a permanent room sensor. The EZvav Controller can be stocked by representatives to provide a simple digital solution to their customers that wish to upgrade their pneumatic or analog inventory to a new digital solution, perfect for retrofit applications!
Background Providence Regional Medical Center’s 10-story, 730,000 square foot Cymbaluk Medical Tower opened in June 2011; completed at a total cost of $500 million. Although opened in 2011, the planning and design for the facility occurred much earlier. After the engineering plans were complete and the building materials necessary to start construction using a CV system purchased, the new facility director asked “Why are we running a Constant Volume system if VAV is allowed?”
The Situation Reasonable payback time and long-term savings had to justify changing the HVAC system in a construction project already underway. Cdi, the project’s mechanical engineers, showed that switching to a Phoenix Controls VAV design offered a tremendous opportunity for cost savings while providing the accuracy and repeatability required to maintain a safe and healthy environment. VAV energy efficiency also qualified for utility incentives that offset costs and reduced the payback period.
The Solution Providence Everett facilities and CDi Engineers decided to use Phoenix Controls VAV tracking pair valves in each patient room. Phoenix Controls venturi valves’ accuracy and turndown capabilities enabled significant energy savings while providing the precision airflow control required in high consequence spaces. The tracking pair system also enabled easy transitioning to a pandemic ready facility if needed.
The Result
Analysis showed that switching to VAV would save an estimated 7,560,000 Kwh per year in energy. Additional utilities rebates available for energy conservation exceeded $1,400,000. Cumulative rewards for switching to VAV reduced the payback period for the entire project from 4.6 years to 3.16 years. The long-term benefits from creating a more adaptable facility with built in energy savings greatly exceeded original project goals.
Nailor – New 92FFD – Fan Filter Diffusers are fan powered diffusers with integrated high efficiency filters for critical environment applications. The diffusers are designed to supply HEPA/ULPA filtered air to a critical environment and are intended for use in cleanroom applications such as microelectronics, pharmaceutical, biotechnology as well as aerospace manufacturing/assembly and laser/optic industries.
Filters are secured within the plenum against a continuous knife edge. The knife edge contacts the gel channel of the filter to provide a leak proof seal. Filters are room-side removable via quarter turn fasteners. All 92FFD Series Plenums are robotically welded to ensure a consistent, rigid, clean and relatively leak free design to verify the specified efficiency and leakage to meet the most stringent of current leakage tests. Each unit is PAO Scan Tested to IEST-RP-CC034.3 Standard to ensure leakage is consistent with an uncompromised filter. Premium design features and high quality construction include a removable face for room-side filter replacement. This enables the integrity of the clean space to be maintained as the ceiling does not need to be penetrated.
Standard ECM technology provides an ultra-energy efficient design with the ability to precisely set a constant air volume. Additionally, as filter loading increases fan external static pressure, the ECM will compensate to maintain set airflow.
Aircuity helps to reduce energy, create a healthier environment and reduce deferred maintenance.
The State University of New York at Plattsburgh is a four-year institution located in northern New York and is a part of the State University of New York (SUNY) system. Currently a big focus of all SUNY locations and SUNY System Administration is to meet Build Smart NY’s executive Order 88. The Governor’s Order mandates a 20 percent improvement in the energy efficiency performance of State government buildings by April 2020. Lab buildings are typically the most energy intensive spaces on campus and the university needed a way to address the energy use in these spaces, while still maintaining a healthy facility for occupants.
Hudson Hall on the SUNY Plattsburgh campus is one of two main science buildings. Local Aircuity representative, Green Building Partners, identified Hudson Hall as a great application for the solution and it was installed in all lab areas of the building. With Aircuity’s implementation, air change rates were reduced from 6 (with a few spaces at 7) to a baseline of 3 and 4 ACH, increasing when additional fresh air is needed.
BENEFITS BEYOND ENERGY SAVINGS Once installed the university was able to realize additional benefits beyond the significant energy savings. Optimizing ventilation through Aircuity also addressed an issue with moisture in the labs. Originally the chillers in the building were not keeping up with the cooling requirements, which in turn was causing a moisture issue with the microscopes. With the ventilation rates matching the current needs of the space and generally less air to cool, SUNY Plattsburgh’s EH&S department confirmed that the problem was eliminated. Aircuity’s solution also helped to reduce the university’s deferred maintenance backlog by identifying several faulty controllers in the building. After the installation was complete Aircuity Advisor™ Services identified several rooms where CFMs were still not reporting as low as initially targeted.
By tracking the CFM levels in each of these rooms through Aircuity Advisor Services, three broken actuators were discovered and then repaired. Now these rooms are hitting their targets.
Two additional rooms are being tracked to further reduce CFM levels by carefully monitoring the fume hood sash positions.
“I met Gordon Sharp (Aircuity’s founder) at a local ASHRAE meeting back late 2013 where he presented a talk on “Deep Energy Reductions in Labs”, said Crystal Price, sustainability coordinator, SUNY Plattsburgh. “Seeing that he had been recently published in the ASHRAE handbook chapter for laboratories, I was excited at the possibility of utilizing this concept to both achieve energy savings and solve a humidity problem in our lab building. We are happy with the results.”
The energy reduction in Hudson Hall grabbed the attention of the New York State Energy Manager (NYEM), who took note of the reduction in the building at the meter level. Currently the building is being considered for an energy efficiency award. The installation of Aircuity in the lab areas is just one example of the significant role an airside solution can play in helping to achieve important energy goals. SUNY Plattsburgh was able to save energy in one of its most energy intensive and critical safety environments on campus, while receiving better indoor environmental quality and reducing deferred maintenance along the way.
ABOUT SUNY AT PLATTSBURGH
SUNY Plattsburgh (www.plattsburgh.edu) was founded in 1889 as a teaching college and in 1948 became an original member of the State University of New York (SUNY). Under President John Ettling, the four-year comprehensive college now serves 5,500 undergraduates and 500 graduate students. It offers more than 60 majors and a wide range of special programs that prepare graduates for professional life and advanced studies through a strong foundation in liberal arts and an experience that celebrates excellence, ethical values, lifelong learning and responsible citizenship in a global community. Situated near Lake Champlain, the Adirondacks, and Canada, the college’s unique location provides rich recreational, cultural and educational opportunities. Today, SUNY Plattsburgh is a thriving campus that has experienced significant growth in student applications, has been recognized two years in a row by Kiplinger’s Personal Finance magazine as one of the “Top 100 Values in Public Colleges,” for its mix of academic quality, financial aid, opportunities and total cost.
ABOUT AIRCUITY Aircuity is the smart airside efficiency company providing building owners with sustained energy savings through its intelligent measurement solutions. By combining real-time sensing and continuous analysis of indoor environments, the company has helped commercial, institutional and lab building owners lower operating costs, improve safety and become more energy efficient. Founded in 2000 and headquartered in Newton, MA, Aircuity’s solutions have benefitted organizations such as the University of Pennsylvania, Eli Lilly, Masdar City, the Bank of America Tower and the University of California-Irvine.
For additional information on this case study and how you could save your facility please contact us.
Case Study – Arizona State University’s Airside Efficiency Program
As a founding member of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, Arizona State University’s (ASU) president committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2025. The university launched a campus-wide carbon reduction initiative and identified buildings, for their large amount of energy consumption as an important part of their plan.
One obvious area of focus for energy reduction was on research and laboratory facilities including the 350,000 sqft, LEED Platinum, Biodesign Institute. After evaluating several measures, ASU selected Aircuity. The solution was implemented through out the building and saved the university $1,000,000 annually.
“Aircuity has been a critical part of helping Arizona State University move forward with its energy conservation initiatives and show real emission reductions,” said Mike McLeod, Director of Facilities at the Biodesign Institute “Their technology allowed us to make a real difference and see efficiency improvements right away.” After the resounding success of the Biodesign Institute, ASU went on to install Aircuity in 24 buildings across campus to date. These spaces include additional science facilities, a student center, library, classroom buildings, and an arena.
ASU is a great example of the wide range of buildings on a campus that can benefit from an airside program. Our customers have told us that implementing a program is a smart investment. Beyond the significant energy savings, an airside efficiency program also reduces the deferred maintenance backlog, validates M&V, reduce operations spend, enhances indoor environmental quality and delivers an information layer for continuous commissioning.
For additional information on this case study and how you could save your facility please contact us.
Achieving Near Net-Zero Energy Usage in Laboratory Facilities
Planning Requires a Holistic Approach to Energy-Saving Technologies
Near net-zero energy usage is achievable for laboratory buildings only by employing a holistic approach that examines how all the available energy-saving technologies work together before focusing on a few, high-impact concepts. These concepts not only reduce energy costs by 50 percent or more, but also can significantly reduce upfront costs. Employed piecemeal, however, they can backfire.
Take airflow, for example. Because airflow is the biggest driver of energy usage in labs, airflow reduction is the key to savings. Utilizing energy models is important, though, since low-flow design can lessen the effects of other energy-saving concepts, says Gordon Sharp, chairman and founder of Aircuity, Inc.
Achieving net-zero energy for a laboratory building alone (where all necessary power is generated on the building itself) is difficult, adds Sharp, because the typical energy output from solar panel technology is only 10 to 20 kWh per sf, and the minimum energy consumption for most labs is 15 to 40 kWh per sf. But achieving net-zero for an entire site is possible by reducing the lab’s energy usage in conjunction with generating energy with photo-voltaics elsewhere on site.
“Net-zero is challenging for a lab, because of the square footage involved and the amount of power density. The problem, or maybe the opportunity, is if we work well with the lab, we can probably get energy usage down low enough that, technically, it is a net-zero lab. However, to have all the solar photovoltaics on the building itself, it would have to be either one story or only a few floors with a lot of office and non-lab spaces, as well.”
Focus on Designs that Maximize Savings
Energy and cost savings can be maximized in lab settings by focusing on a few targeted, high-impact concepts, says Sharp.
“You can get the bulk of the savings with a few ideas versus trying to do 20 different things, each generating 2 percent savings.”
Sharp’s company developed an energy analysis tool that holistically evaluates a lab’s needs and focuses on its unique requirements. The majority of a lab’s energy is used for heating/cooling outside air, so available tools that focused on building envelopes weren’t effective. Aircuity’s model calculates probable energy and upfront costs, taking into account the proposed design and outside climate, and how various energy-saving approaches would work within those parameters.
“All these technologies interact, and if you look at each product separately, that doesn’t account for the interaction and often adds up to more cost than energy savings,” he says. The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) has expressed interest in using this analysis tool, which has already been accepted by utility companies and others.
In conjunction with the analysis, Sharp recommends a pyramid approach to modeling energy systems. The systems with the most impact form the foundation, or pyramid base. The ascending layers play increasingly lesser roles in energy savings. The five levels, starting with the base, are:
Variable air volume (VAV), or basic airflow control approaches
Demand-based control and fume hood minimums
Low pressure drop design and VAV exit velocity flow
Chilled beams
Heat recovery
“To optimize lab safety, first cost, and energy, combine systems based on analysis of net benefits,” he advises.
The Pyramid Approach
To begin reducing lab airflow, says Sharp, look at the three main factors that impact it:
Makeup air for exhaust devices, such as fume hoods, biosafety cabinets, and animal cage racks
Thermal loads
Air changes per hour (ACH) ventilation dilution rates.
Whichever factor is highest will dictate the lab airflow, says Sharp. Reductions in one area do not necessarily affect overall energy consumption. For example, to save on thermal energy, a lab can use more efficient freezers, but doing so could increase HVAC energy, because those freezers were generating heat and possibly reducing reheat costs.
“While it’s good to get more efficient freezers, you then have to reduce your airflow in these areas, or it’s not going to generate as much HVAC energy savings as you might think. Look at all these requirements and reduce each one.”
There are various means to reduce airflow from fume hoods, including high-performance devices such as low face velocity hoods and filter or ductless hoods. Encouraging good sash-closing habits helps, or use automatic sash-closing technology.
For labs with a moderate to high density of hoods, new ANSI Z9.5 minimum fume hood airflow requirements promote significant energy savings, says Sharp. The new recommended range allows for as low as 100 cfm for a 6-foot hood when the sash is closed. For extremely high-density labs, such as six to eight hoods in 1,000 sf, keeping the sashes down and using low fume hood airflow minimums is probably the only way to reduce airflow, adds Sharp.
Typical thermal loads for labs are 2.5 to 3 watts per sf, which would require less than four ACH during the day to cool the room, he adds. Reducing the ACH in a lab environment to two to four during the day and two at night is an achievable goal. If high thermal loads are the culprit, using chilled beams or hydronic cooling to decouple the airflow from the actual thermal loads is beneficial, he adds.
Demand-based control is one of the best ways to lower ACH in the lab room. A system of centralized sensors monitors the indoor environment for contaminants about once every 15 minutes. If the air is clean, the airflow minimum is reduced to as low as two ACH; when air contaminants are sensed, the airflow is increased to eight to 16 ACH.
“When air contaminants are sensed, we want to ‘purge’ the lab or go to a higher airflow,” notes Sharp. “But 98 percent of the time the lab air is clean, and a low ventilation rate can be used.”
Sharp’s company has done more than 500 projects with the demand-based control concept, and this approach is even referenced in the ASHRAE HVAC Applications handbook.
“This performance-based approach to airflow control within labs creates a dramatic reduction in the airflow and the energy required to operate a laboratory. When you do that, you can reduce capital cost, as well, because less airflow capacity and HVAC equipment are required.”
Variable exhaust fan exit velocity control also can lower airflow. Typically, exhaust fans run at a constant flow with a high exit velocity, so exhaust air doesn’t flow back into the building or into other buildings nearby. A damper adds roof air to the exhaust when this airflow drops in order to maintain constant flow. To save energy, one or more manifold fans can be staged, or sequentially turned off, as the building airflow is reduced. However, even staged exhaust fans can consume more than two times the energy of exhaust fans operating in variable air volume or VAV mode, says Sharp.
When wind speed is low enough and coming from the right direction, the exhaust discharge velocity can be reduced without increasing its reentry into the building. A wind responsive exhaust fan control system uses anemometers, controls, and a table determined by wind tunnel testing to reduce the exhaust fan airflow under certain wind speed and direction conditions.
A demand-based approach that measures the contaminants in the exhaust air can save even more energy, says Sharp. When the exhaust air is clean or has a low contaminant level, the airflow can be reduced while limiting reentry to safe levels. When contaminants are detected, the exhaust fan flow is increased. For most labs, the exhaust air is clean 98 percent of the time.
Another approach is low-pressure-drop design. Typical HVAC designs might have a combined exhaust and supply pressure drop of about 10 inches, whereas good design can achieve 6.5 inches, says Sharp. “If you really work at it, you might be able to get to a design as low as 4 inches of total supply and exhaust. The energy savings of this design is similar in magnitude to the exhaust fan control approach.”
Combining Systems
Chilled beams are higher on the pyramid because, although they are a great energy-saving concept, they work most effectively when coupled with reduced airflow and demand-based control, says Sharp. Cooling requirements in most labs are low, so beams placed in a lab with six to eight ACH won’t get used often, because the necessary cooling comes from the airflow itself.
If a demand-based approach can be used to reduce outside airflow requirements for dilution ventilation, then chilled beams can decouple the outside air and supply airflow requirements. When the lab’s cooling requirements exceed the cooling provided by the two to four ACHs in demand-based control, then the chilled beams will take care of additional cooling requirements.
“The best approach is, reduce the outside air and let the beams do their job.”
This also enables a downsizing of the HVAC system, because its use is based on the ventilation requirements of the lab, which are going to be low most of the time, adds Sharp. The combination of chilled beams and demand-based control results in lower HVAC system upfront costs. These savings are usually higher than those realized from conventional VAV control or chilled beams alone, he notes.
Heat recovery is at the top of the pyramid because for all but extremely cold or extremely hot and humid climates, it often provides less savings, says Sharp, especially compared with reducing airflow.
An enthalpy wheel provides the most effective and efficient means to recover and transfer thermal-related energy and humidity-related energy. This large, porous wheel rotates through the exhaust airflow stream on one side and the fresh air stream on the other, swapping the airstreams and transferring moisture and temperature in the process. Since a small amount of contaminants carries over from the exhaust to the supply airstream, these wheels should be used only with airflows that are strictly room exhaust, with no fume hood exhaust.
Runaround loops—two linked coils filled with a heat-conduction liquid such as glycol—can be used to safely transfer sensible energy or thermal energy only from the fume hood exhaust to the supply air. They can be effective in cold climates but don’t offer as much savings in more temperate or warm and humid climates, and in some cases can increase costs, says Sharp.
“It is important to remember that these coils cause a significant pressure drop, and you have to pay for that pressure drop in energy. This energy cost reduces the total thermal savings, so the result in some cases can actually be a net increase in total energy used.
“If you’re going to use heat recovery, take maximum advantage of its ability to reduce the chiller and heating system peak load requirements by downsizing your HVAC system, because that’s where significant benefits and payback potential exist.”
Enthalpy wheels offer more payback in cold and dry climates or very humid environments, whereas runaround loop systems are best applied in colder environments, where there is more heat energy to be recovered.
“It is also important to remember that if variable air volume and demand-based systems are used to cut the airflow rates significantly, there’s less for the heat recovery systems to do. That’s part of the reason the savings may not be as not as much as expected,” says Sharp. “On the other hand, reducing the lab airflows can potentially reduce the heat recovery systems’ size, which will partially improve payback.”
Energy Savings in Action: Case Studies
These energy-saving technologies and philosophies work well even in extreme climates, says Sharp. One example is the Masdar Institute of Science and Technology (MIST) in Abu Dhabi, where temperatures can get up to 120 degrees with high humidity. The project consisted of two buildings totaling 1.5 million sf, about 250,000 nsf of which is lab space. Their goal was to build sustainable but also economically viable facilities without spending millions.
Using the energy analysis tool, Sharp looked at how much the energy costs would be for a smaller lab project of about 125,000 gsf, with 50,000 nsf of lab space and 30,000 nsf office space—about one-fifth of the total project. Factoring in a conservative minimum ACH baseline of six, local energy costs, a low to moderate density of hoods, and the Abu Dhabi climate, he concluded that baseline energy usage would be $600,000 for that portion, or $3 million total annually. Cooling costs constituted 60 percent of the total energy use.
The analysis showed that combining several high-impact approaches could achieve a 74 percent energy savings. Demand-based control reduced airflow to two ACH minimum day and night when the lab air was clean, and up to 14 ACH when contaminants were detected. Fume hoods were operated with automatic sash closers and airflow minimums at 100 cfm, or 150 hood ACH when the sash is closed. Chilled beams, some aspects of low pressure-drop design, and an enthalpy wheel were also employed, says Sharp. Demand-based control alone reduced lab HVAC energy costs by $322,000 annually, or 53 percent. The system paid for itself in 1.4 years, he adds.
The HVAC system capacity also was reduced significantly for MIST, resulting in upfront cost savings. Even more importantly, the lower energy requirements reduced the size of the photo-voltaics needed to run the buildings and achieved a near net-zero result for the site. The demand-based control, even with the impact of the other energy savings approaches, saved about 9,000 megawatt hours for the whole project, or about four megawatts of solar capacity—roughly $20 million of first cost, according to Sharp.
This same project in a climate like Boston’s generates a slightly higher reduction in energy—77 percent. The use of demand-based control and a reduction of minimum ACH levels from six to four (when occupied) and two (when unoccupied) achieved a 13 percent reduction in peak HVAC airflow, for an HVAC capital cost savings of $280,000 annually. If chilled beams, a VAV exhaust system, and heat recovery are used along with a demand-based control system operating at two ACH minimum day and night, then the initial cost of the HVAC system, chilled beams, and heat recovery can be reduced by $850,000. Even with the cost of the demand-based control system, this approach generates a first cost reduction of $386,000, notes Sharp
A Paradigm Shift
Low airflow lab design represents a paradigm shift, but the savings are so significant and easily achievable, it should be used as the foundation for efficiency, believes Sharp.
Utilizing these savings measures also allows for more open and flexible lab designs, because you are creating an environment more akin to an office than a lab. And the low airflow designs can be adapted to work in any climate.
“The bottom line is: Do your analysis, make sure each energy-saving concept makes sense for your situation, and then apply it appropriately.”
By Taitia Shelow
This report is based on a presentation Sharp made at Tradeline’s 2014 International Conference on Research Facilities.
Doing things because “That is the way we always did it” does not make it the right way. Using new technologies is how humankind progresses. Doing it the old way would bring us back to carrying people in litters rather than using wheels. Certainly it would be simpler and more economical to build litters than automobiles and jets.
The technology behind the controls sequence is not new. It is used on large equipment every day. Every day, we design buildings with air handlers that are designed to be used in VAV applications. This is for the purpose of saving energy and investment money by using smaller equipment to satisfy only the simultaneous building load rather than the total building peak load. This allows us to take advantage of building diversity and save money both in first cost and in operating costs. What is new is that the ECM motor gives us the opportunity to improve the old way.
The old-style fan coil units using PSC motors cause the hotel to be conditioned with equipment sized for the total load; however, the room very rarely sees total load conditions. Having on/off control with 3-speed motors and 2-position valves does not allow the fan coils to address part load conditions. This new design allows for the room equipment (the fan coils) to address not only full load conditions, but also part load conditions where the room lives at least 85% of the year. The new design will meet the building design requirements under all operating conditions.
Once the ECM motor was available, equipment could be designed that would take advantage of the calculated load in the space. And because the motor efficiency and blower efficiency both increase as the motor rpm and airflow are decreased, the owner or user pays lower utility bills while the equipment provides a superior environment and lower sound levels.
Forward looking companies should require that new technologies be used when available and when they can improve the building so that their clientele, the occupants, are able to take advantage of lower energy costs, improved IAQ and lower sound levels. ECM motors and dynamic fan and valve control designed to regulate discharge air temperature certainly meet that criteria.
Energy demand and utility costs in laboratory buildings are very high — they can require 5-10 times more energy per square foot than a typical commercial office building. Given all the scientific equipment and technology found in modern research labs, this isn’t hard to imagine. Laboratories are so energy intensive for a number of reasons, spanning far beyond lab equipment, each with a variety of energy savings opportunities. We’re taking a look at a few of the reasons why labs require so much energy to operate and what is being done to advance laboratory energy efficiency.
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
In many lab buildings, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems make up the majority of the building’s energy demand. Because a safe research lab environment needs clean air, lab building ventilation rates are particularly high, sometimes up to 12 Air Changes per Hour (ACH). This means that in each hour, the entire volume of air in the lab is completely replenished with clean air 12 times. Depending on how sophisticated the HVAC controls are, as well as the occupant work schedule of the lab, facility managers can program the building’s HVAC system to operate at the minimum rate (four ACH) when the building is unoccupied, and raise it to the needed ventilation rate when the building is in use. More advanced HVAC control systems can adjust ventilation rates based on indoor air quality using real-time, zone level data. This means that ventilation rates can increase when contaminants are detected in the air, and decrease when the indoor air quality is high. This can significantly reduce energy consumption while still maintaining a safe work environment at all times. When considering retrofit and retrocommissioning options in a lab building, financial decision makers should first start with HVAC systems for a cost effective energy efficiency upgrade.
Fume Hoods
As another example of energy use in lab buildings, lab fume hoods can consume as much energy as two to three homes in the US. If you aren’t familiar with this widely used technology, a fume hood is a ventilation device that protects lab workers from breathing in volatile chemicals by drawing in air from the lab space and pushing the air outside the building. The number of fume hoods in a lab affects the utility costs of the building significantly. With fairly simple behavioral changes, like using a sash (a moveable shield at the opening of the fume hood) when the fume hood is not in use, energy can be saved in two ways. First, less conditioned air is pumped out of the room, reducing the demand on the lab’s HVAC. Second, with Variable Air Volume (VAV) fume hoods, shutting the sash will reduce the rate of exhaust air flow to maintain the minimum ventilation rate. This reduces energy consumption, as well as upholds a safer work environment for occupants. As a result, it would be wise for labs to adopt this practice as policy, as well as engage lab workers to shut the sash when the fume hood is not in use.
PowerSave Campus
The Alliance to Save Energy’s PowerSave Campus program has implemented several fume hood energy competitions resulting in huge energy savings. Currently, a “shut the sash” competition is being held at UC San Francisco, where after just one month of outreach to around 40 lab employees using 22 fume hoods, annual savings are projected to reach approximately 148,000 kWh and $19,000. To help ensure long term energy saving practices continue, frequent reminders through visual cues and other outreach techniques will be implemented after the competition is over.
Additional Strategies
According to Allison Paradise, executive director of My Green Lab, one of the most important energy saving strategies that is often overlooked is occupant behavior change, especially in labs that have already implemented energy efficiency measures. In addition to shutting the sash on fume hoods, a few easy strategies that can reduce the operational costs of a lab include: turning off the lights at the end of the day, utilizing task lighting, unplugging lab equipment and using appliance timers. Switching an Ultra-Low Temperature Freezer used to store samples from -80 degrees Celsius to -70 degrees Celsius can potentially reduce the freezer’s energy consumption by 30 percent. This can save the lab a substantial amount of money and can be done without the risk of damaging most samples.
Even with an abundance of energy savings opportunities, promoting behavior change in research labs can be challenging. In an atmosphere where scientific research always takes priority, saving energy is not something most lab workers often think about. Moreover, if behavior change means altering something that could, in some conceivable way, negatively affect research, it often ends the discussion prematurely. That’s why it’s up to building facilities managers, EH&S, energy efficiency professionals and energy conscious building occupants to communicate how energy efficient behavior practices can be done safely and with minimal effort.
New 41V Series – FAN COIL UNITS (ENGINEERED COMFORT BRAND)
Coming Soon…
Ideal for use in hospitality, condominiums and an excellent retrofit choice; the 41V Series will initially be available in concealed and exposed chassis. The exposed chassis will offer both a traditional and sloped top arrangement.
Features include:
PSC and 3-speed ECM
Two or four pipe hydronic connections
Electric heat
MERV 8 or 13 pleated filter options
Multiple mounting options
Airflow ranges from 200 – 1200 cfm* [*motor and type dependent]
Factory supplied piping packages.
Concealed:
Discharge flange for grille or ducted connections
Slim profile design; less than 10″ (254) deep in most cases
Easily accessible internal components
Optional decorative wall panel
Exposed:
Constructed of heavy gauge steel
One piece front panel assembly provides easy access to internal components
Standard supply air is delivered through a stamped louvered face; double deflection and linear bar grilles are optional
Assortment of fasteners, including 1/4 turn or tamper-proof available.
Metropolitan Equipment Group, Inc has recently updated our stock catalog. Please click below to download the latest version, or check out our warehouse section for additional information.
New Products: – 5010 & 5075 Lay-In Linear Slot Diffusers – 5875I Plenum Slot Diffusers – Stainless Steel Quick Release Clamps – 24″ Dia Spiral Duct
Big Ten & Friends Mechanical & Energy Conference September 20 – 23, 2015
Welcome to the University of Maryland, the location of the 2015 Big Ten & Friends Mechanical & Energy Conference. This year’s conference will be held September 20 – 23, 2015 at the College Park Marriott Hotel & Conference Center and we look forward to your participation.
The Big Ten & Friends Mechanical & Energy Conference will bring together facility owners, operators, engineers and professionals in higher education and business partners to network, listen to, and take back information to continually improve the sustainability and efficiency of campus and university infrastructure. Mechanical infrastructure and operation directly impact facilities’ energy and carbon footprint. This year’s conference hopes to blend industry developments and practices to improve energy consumption, ultimately and potentially reducing carbon footprint while meeting ever-increasing demands for resiliency, reliability, comfort, and indoor air quality. Methods of monitoring, measurement, and control allow for facilities personnel to meet these needs.
The University of Maryland is located just outside the Nation’s Capital, Washington, DC. The College Park Marriott Hotel & Conference Center, located within the 1856 Land Grant Institution, is within walking distance of the University grounds and facilities.
We truly hope you will be able to join us for both an enjoyable & educational experience.
Energy demand and utility costs in laboratory buildings are very high — they can require 5-10 times more energy per square foot than a typical commercial office building. Given all the scientific equipment and technology found in modern research labs, this isn’t hard to imagine. Laboratories are so energy intensive for a number of reasons, spanning far beyond lab equipment, each with a variety of energy savings opportunities. We’re taking a look at a few of the reasons why labs require so much energy to operate and what is being done to advance laboratory energy efficiency.
Heating, Ventilation and Air Conditioning (HVAC)
In many lab buildings, HVAC (heating, ventilation and air conditioning) systems make up the majority of the building’s energy demand. Because a safe research lab environment needs clean air, lab building ventilation rates are particularly high, sometimes up to 12 Air Changes per Hour (ACH). This means that in each hour, the entire volume of air in the lab is completely replenished with clean air 12 times. Depending on how sophisticated the HVAC controls are, as well as the occupant work schedule of the lab, facility managers can program the building’s HVAC system to operate at the minimum rate (four ACH) when the building is unoccupied, and raise it to the needed ventilation rate when the building is in use. More advanced HVAC control systems can adjust ventilation rates based on indoor air quality using real-time, zone level data. This means that ventilation rates can increase when contaminants are detected in the air, and decrease when the indoor air quality is high. This can significantly reduce energy consumption while still maintaining a safe work environment at all times. When considering retrofit and retrocommissioning options in a lab building, financial decision makers should first start with HVAC systems for a cost effective energy efficiency upgrade.
Fume Hoods
As another example of energy use in lab buildings, lab fume hoods can consume as much energy as two to three homes in the US. If you aren’t familiar with this widely used technology, a fume hood is a ventilation device that protects lab workers from breathing in volatile chemicals by drawing in air from the lab space and pushing the air outside the building. The number of fume hoods in a lab affects the utility costs of the building significantly. With fairly simple behavioral changes, like using a sash (a moveable shield at the opening of the fume hood) when the fume hood is not in use, energy can be saved in two ways. First, less conditioned air is pumped out of the room, reducing the demand on the lab’s HVAC. Second, with Variable Air Volume (VAV) fume hoods, shutting the sash will reduce the rate of exhaust air flow to maintain the minimum ventilation rate. This reduces energy consumption, as well as upholds a safer work environment for occupants. As a result, it would be wise for labs to adopt this practice as policy, as well as engage lab workers to shut the sash when the fume hood is not in use.
PowerSave Campus
The Alliance to Save Energy’s PowerSave Campus program has implemented several fume hood energy competitions resulting in huge energy savings. Currently, a “shut the sash” competition is being held at UC San Francisco, where after just one month of outreach to around 40 lab employees using 22 fume hoods, annual savings are projected to reach approximately 148,000 kWh and $19,000. To help ensure long term energy saving practices continue, frequent reminders through visual cues and other outreach techniques will be implemented after the competition is over.
Additional Strategies
According to Allison Paradise, executive director of My Green Lab, one of the most important energy saving strategies that is often overlooked is occupant behavior change, especially in labs that have already implemented energy efficiency measures. In addition to shutting the sash on fume hoods, a few easy strategies that can reduce the operational costs of a lab include: turning off the lights at the end of the day, utilizing task lighting, unplugging lab equipment and using appliance timers. Switching an Ultra-Low Temperature Freezer used to store samples from -80 degrees Celsius to -70 degrees Celsius can potentially reduce the freezer’s energy consumption by 30 percent. This can save the lab a substantial amount of money and can be done without the risk of damaging most samples.
Even with an abundance of energy savings opportunities, promoting behavior change in research labs can be challenging. In an atmosphere where scientific research always takes priority, saving energy is not something most lab workers often think about. Moreover, if behavior change means altering something that could, in some conceivable way, negatively affect research, it often ends the discussion prematurely. That’s why it’s up to building facilities managers, EH&S, energy efficiency professionals and energy conscious building occupants to communicate how energy efficient behavior practices can be done safely and with minimal effort.
Recommission or Retro-Commission (RCx) – No news, doesn’t mean good news!
Many times we simply respond to complaints and when there aren’t any, we assume the system is working properly. Based on our extensive experience in engineering, servicing, commissioning and re-commissioning labs, we know that serious operational problems affecting airflow, safety and energy efficiency can be present even though occupants are not complaining. Whether your laboratory is relatively new or decades old, a periodic review of your airflow control systems is essential to maintaining the energy savings and safety of the system. Metropolitan Equipment Group will take the time to understand your needs and develop a plan with the entire team to recommission the system to realize the energy savings potential and bring safety back to the forefront.
As laboratory buildings grow more complex and more highly tailored, the controls necessary to protect the health and safety of the occupants also become increasingly complicated. This is particularly true in an academic setting where labs are highly customized.
Recommissioning (RCx) has become an increasingly common process for laboratory air flow systems. While recognizing the increased complexity and interdependency of systems, at the end of the day, the relationship between the laboratory controls and the building automation system is what helps to maintain containment and user safety within these laboratories.
Even if your laboratory was commissioned when it was originally built (many were not), it has likely changed over time to meet changing needs. The addition or removal of fume hoods, snorkels, walls or partitions will change the airflow requirements of a laboratory. Additionally, if equipment is overridden or disabled by occupants (not uncommon) or by component failure, laboratory performance will be affected, even if things seem to be working properly.
Annual fume hood re-certification isn’t enough. Though fume hood re-certification is important, it doesn’t provide the complete inspection, testing and verification of your laboratory airflow control system and comprehensive documentation of results and recommendations that RCx does. It also doesn’t identify energy saving opportunities that, when implemented, typically save our clients 15-20% a year in energy costs.
Our team is geared to enhance safety and comfort while achieving energy savings. Labs that are properly recommissioned will offer comfortable, safe environments that increases productivity while eliminating smells and sounds that threaten occupant safety and productivity.
Drive Reliable Energy Savings in Commercial Buildings with Aircuity CO2+
Did you know HVAC costs in commercial buildings represent 1/3 of the total energy use? Aircuity CO2+ is an exciting new addition to the market place as it delivers reliable CO2 demand control ventilation (DCV) to reduce energy use, enhance the indoor environmental quality (IEQ) for occupants and provide insightful data on building ventilation performance.
Aircuity CO2+ offers:
Accurate CO2 measurement for the life of the building
Maintained energy savings
Comprehensive reporting on IEQ conditions
Zero maintenance requirements for building staff
All system maintenance performed in utility area of building
Single point of digital integration for any size building
The majority of building ventilation systems run at constant levels, regardless of the actual occupancy at any given time. Vacant conference rooms, offices or classrooms are typically overventilated, but when these spaces are fully occupied they quickly become underventilated, leading to uncomfortable, unhappy occupants and lower productivity. Adjusting ventilation rates to match these changing conditions allows for energy savings and a better IEQ.
Aircuity is the most reliable method of DCV, specifically designed to overcome the deficiencies of discrete sensing systems. Discrete sensors become inaccurate over time, typically reporting CO2 levels higher than actual conditions, which will cause the building to become overventilated again, eliminating energy savings. Trying to calibrate and replace a large number of discrete sensors on a regular basis is difficult and results in higher life cycle costs. Aircuity’s remote sampling, centralized sensing architecture significantly reduces the number of sensors and utilizes a unique differential measurement approach to ensure accurate and reliable measurements of IEQ parameters for superior DCV. Aircuity takes air samples from variable occupancy spaces throughout a building and routes these back to a centralized sensing suite (SST). With just a few sensors centrally located, Aircuity is able to provide a maintenance program that assures proper system functionality by replacing sensors every six months with factory calibrated sensors.
In addition to offering reliable DCV, the newly designed system architecture allows for a cost-effective approach. The new SST550 utilizes Alternating Limb™ functionality, which significantly increases the number of areas sampled, when systems are configured in a “balanced” manner as shown below.
Alternating Limb System Architecture: CO2 Application
When considering life cycle costs such as annual calibration, sensor replacement and estimated 5 year operating and maintenance costs, Aircuity’s CO2 DCV solution costs significantly less (see table). This new product makes it possible for customers to have it all—and makes Aircuity CO2+ the right choice for nearly any CO2 monitoring project.
How much less is Aircuity compared to discrete sensing?
About the Customer Baptist Health Lexington (known for many years as Central Baptist Hospital), is a 383 bed tertiary care facility located in Lexington, Kentucky. Established in 1954, Baptist Health is renowned for its regional leading cancer care as well as its Heart Institute. Since the first baby was delivered there 2 hours after the hospital opened in 1954, Baptist Health has been known as the “baby” hospital in Central Kentucky, delivering over 4000 babies annually.
Problem In the mid-2000’s, Baptist Health built an 8-story addition to the hospital to house their new Heart Institute as well as outpatient services and medical offices. Before the addition to the building (which raised the existing structure from 3 stories to 8 stories), grease exhausted from the existing cafeteria was simply exhausted above the 3-story structure. Now, with the five additional stories, this same exhaust was being carried by prevailing winds into the new taller structure causing odor issues as well as potential sanitary issues in the new addition as fresh air intakes were built into the façade of the new building facing the kitchen exhaust.
Solution Three Strobic Air Tri-Stack® fans, specially designed to handle kitchen grease exhaust, were installed. Applying the Tri-Stack’s® proven technology to both dilute and prevent re-entrainment of the exhaust fumes, Strobic Air designed a high temperature variant of the Tri-Stack® that incorporates the use of all steel construction, high temperature coating (rated to 1000° F), and sloped plenum floor with grease trap. These added features allow the Strobic Air Tri-Stack® Exhaust Systems to meet the following standards:
• Independently tested and certified to meet UL 762 Standard for Power Roof Ventilators for Restaurant Exhaust Appliances. • Designed to meet NFPA 96 Standard for Ventilation Control and Fire Protection of Commercial Cooking Operations.
Results Thanks to the installation of the Strobic Air Tri-Stack® fans, Baptist Health has cured their kitchen grease exhaust issue. Due to the Tri-Stack’s® ability to provide very high dilution rates, typically 300-400% for restaurant applications, combined with its ability to create and maintain virtual plume heights of 30-50 feet without tall stacks and guy wires, the grease from the hospital’s kitchen exhaust is no longer detected by the patients and staff in the new addition, nor is grease building up on the windows or façade of the new structure.
Customer Feedback “We had used Tri-Stack® fans on traditional lab applications at the hospital so we were aware of how they worked and the quality of their construction. In this instance, with the fresh air intakes of the new building facing the kitchen, it was vitally important that we didn’t exhaust grease into sick patient rooms. We looked at several other options with our consulting engineer (Sam Claxton, CMTA), but in the end, the Strobic Air Tri-Stacks® were much more cost effective and fit our aesthetics much better than tall chimneys with stacks and guy wires.” – Bill Byrd, Director of Engineering, Baptist Health Lexington
For more information on Strobic Air’s Tri-Stack Fans, please click here.
While ensuring your critical spaces are safe, Phoenix Control’s laboratory and healthcare airflow control systems can also provide important data to help facility owners reduce energy costs, ensure compliance to industry standards and quickly troubleshoot equipment issues. Phoenix Controls offer multiple solutions to view this information, from elegant room-level monitors to building-wide dashboard products that provide analysis of real-time data. Phoenix Controls also offers critical space integration solutions that provide a cost effective path to getting the data required into your building management system (BMS).
Network Integration
Phoenix Controls offers critical space integration solutions for integrating to legacy BMS. Highlights include:
Choice of centralized or distributed architecture
Support for multiple integration protocols including BACnet over IP or BACnet MS/TP
Web pages to easily monitor the health or diagnose any problems from your valve control systems using a standard browser
Optional I/O modules for integrating third party devices into one room level solution
Standard web-based Test and Balance tool for use by balancers
Room Integrator
The Phoenix Controls Room Integrator is a flexible integration solution that seamlessly integrates laboratory and healthcare airflow control devices to building automation networks. The Room Integrator’s primary purpose is providing the protocol translation and HVAC data integration between the company’s environmental control systems to BACnet®-capable Building Automation Systems (BAS). The integrator performs bidirectional translation between room-level devices using the LonWorks® technology and the BAS utilizing either BACnet over IP or MS/TP to manage read requests and write commands.
Room Controller
The Phoenix Controls Room Controller is a multi-purpose solution seamlessly integrating laboratory and healthcare airflow control devices to building automation networks while providing a platform for custom control logic. It performs:
Protocol translation and data integration between the company’s environmental control systems to BACnet®-capable Building Automation Systems (BAS).
Bidirectional translation between room-level devices using LonWorks® technology and the BAS utilizing either BACnet over IP or MS/TP to manage read requests and write commands.
The Room Controller offers a graphical programming environment and configurable inputs and outputs to extend control functions provided by on-site valve controllers. Using optional 16- or 34-point I/O modules, or via a wide range of field busses, it can also be used to provide local control for hard-wired third party devices: typically room-level lighting control, advanced temperature control sequences, or integrating air quality sensors to the building’s front-end visualization system.
Room Manager
Phoenix Controls Room Manager software is used to centrally manage your Room Integrator and Room Controller integration devices. It includes the Phoenix Controls Workbench configuration software to install and commission new devices. Room Manager can be used as centralized integration point for all installed Phoenix Control devices when a minimal number of IP addresses are required. The software also includes a web server and serves web pages indicating the health of all devices as well as diagnostic tools to trouble shoot any room network or device problems. Room Manager can be easily upgraded to a Phoenix Control Supervisor to provide a complete airflow control system solution that includes front end dashboards, data trending, airflow analytics and alarm management.
Introduction We would like to take this opportunity to introduce you to Aircuity CO2+, our new solution for CO2 based DCV applications. Aircuity CO2+ offers a cost-effective and easier to implement solution for buildings where CO2 is the primary driver of ventilation requirements. Imagine almost two times (2X) the coverage per Sensor Suite at 20-30% lower cost as compared to today’s offering. This translates not only to significant first-cost savings, but also to a reduction of the on-going costs of maintaining the energy savings entitlement through OAS and Advisor services.
Better cost efficiency is achieved via new system components, which have been optimized specifically around CO2 sensing requirements, thus doubling the capacity of our system. Additionally, OptiNet® now incorporates pre-programmed DCV logic to support a wide range of applications, from DCV applications involving individual zones to that of large-scale multi-zone systems. Having this logic ‘built in’ helps to minimize the project’s dependency on the BAS vendor programming of a DCV sequence, thereby ensuring a better quality solution that’s easier and less costly to implement.
Included in this package are:
Guidelines to help estimate a job
Preliminary pricing
Draft Product Data Sheets, Guide Spec and Sequence of Operations to include with submittals
A draft of the Office Building DCV Applications Primer, which will be incorporated into the Engineering Guide Detailed pricing and specific layout recommendations will follow.
Background While the existing Aircuity solution for CO2 based DCV control has better long-term reliability and stability and lower life cycle costs than an approach using discrete sensors, our higher first cost sometimes discourages owners from choosing Aircuity. With Aircuity CO2+ owners will see a substantial improvement in both first and life cycle costs, resulting in a more competitive solution.
Aircuity CO2+ is more competitive: Using a solutions-based value pricing approach you can expect to achieve 20-30% cost savings on both first-cost and on-going services compared to our previous non-lab solution. This significant value improvement will make us more competitive in the larger, straight CO2 DCV market with a solution that is easier to implement.
Aircuity CO2+ provides increased coverage: Optimizing the layout and leveraging Alternating Limb™ sequencing can almost double the number of sensed locations per SST. In a highly optimized layout you can expect to support up to 60 Test Areas per SST. Greater density allows you to optimize ventilation across a larger footprint without adding another SST.
Aircuity CO2+ will deliver vastly improved performance: New application functionality provides the configurability and embedded logic to reset VAV boxes serving both individual spaces and multiple spaces while factoring in outside air fraction and reset of the outside air damper to achieve the most efficient ventilation scheme. The Primer provides details including a sequence of operations for the many different ways this powerful capability can be applied.
What does this mean for you? Release to Spec means that the design and internal testing is complete, manufacturing processes are in place, and pilot production quantities have been built and verified. So why isn’t this a full “Sales Release”? We are completing field testing, evaluating the results of the installation, start-up and run-time performance, and making final adjustments to the tools, products and processes. Once complete AIRCUITY CO2+ will be confirmed as “Release to Ship”.
The goal of “Release to Spec” is to provide you the information you need to initiate the sales cycle as soon as possible so we can both realize revenue opportunities sooner. We plan to “Release to Ship” by Q4 of this year.
ALN Magazine: Lost in Data Overload? Building Information Management Can Help
The above graph shows the distribution of hourly temperature and humidity measurements from 12AM to 12PM each day of the week.
In today’s smart buildings where thousands or tens of thousands of parameters are being measured, the amount of data streaming to professionals responsible for animal care, energy conservation, health and safety, and facilities can quickly become overwhelming. Not only are there the standard building systems, there will most likely be a plethora of specialized systems as well. Fortunately for users and building operators, solutions are evolving in terms of remote data storage, diagnostic analytics, and data visualization, which can relieve users from having to cope with these large volumes of data to achieve some productive benefit.Reasons for collecting data are many and well established. The desire for energy related data is driven by corporate goals and in some cases government mandates to reduce energy consumption and greenhouse gases. The advent of smaller, more economical sensors and controllers allow for monitoring of practically everything. Now think of a building with all of its control systems and all the parameters that can conceivably be measured and you get thousands or tens of thousands of data points.Service providers often utilize data centers rather than servers to collect and store large volumes of data. Your business is to manage a facility or support or perform research. Their business is to manage your data, ensure its integrity, and make it available on demand. Some of these service providers will apply their domain expertise to provide analysis or diagnostic services while others will simply make the data available to third parties for analytic services.
What should you do with this data and how can it be transformed into actionable information? Read the full article to find out.
Aircuity Events
We hope that you can join us at one of these upcoming conferences:Tradeline: Research Facilities May 7 – 8 St. Petersburg, FL
An ESA Makes Airside Efficiency EasyAircuity’s new offering makes it easy for any institution to make immediate impact on their HVAC energy use
Aircuity makes it simple for any institution to develop and deploy their airside reduction program with it’s new offering- an energy services agreement (ESA). Some may not have the resources or dedicated capital funds, but they are aware that an airside efficiency program is an important part of their overall sustainability goals. That’s were an ESA comes in. This offering from Aircuity allows an institution to start making an immediate and large impact on HVAC energy costs without funding the program out of their capital projects budget. It provides the perfect vehicle for starting and expanding an airside efficiency program while only using the utility/operating expenses budget.
An ESA Allows for: • No capital outlay • A portfolio approach • Easy implementation process • Lower implementation risk • Faster deployment of energy projects across a portfolio
Under an ESA: • All design and construction costs are covered •Positive net cash flow from day 1 •Payments are made for measured quantities of energy saved •Payments likely to be treated as an operating expenses under the utility budget
Sound like a good fit and want to find out more? Send us an email.
Smart Business: Jackson LaboratoryHartford Business Journal: JAX Lands $1.2M Energize Incentive
Photo courtesy of Jackson Labs
To help its sustainability efforts, the Jackson Laboratory of Bar Harbor, Maine, received a $1.2 million Energize Connecticut incentive for its new Farmington facility, which has since been certified LEED Gold. Prior to construction of the Genomic Medicine lab in Farmington, which opened in October, Senior Facilities Director John Fitzpatrick worked with Hartford utility Eversource Energy to utilize Energize Connecticut programs and create a customized plan to reduce the lab’s energy footprint.The energy-saving measures implemented during construction of the 184,000 square foot building will save JAX Genomic Medicine more than $620,000 a year on its energy bill. The total cost of the efficiency portion of the project was roughly $2.4 million, so after incentives covered half of that, the payback will be less than two years. That helped achieve the Gold level of the U.S. Green Building Council’s Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design program.
One of the most effective measures installed was a facility monitoring system by Aircuity used to regulate ventilation throughout the labs. For climates like Connecticut’s where it is cold in the winter and hot and humid in the summer, an Aircuity system reduces the amount of outside air required to provide safe ventilation rates in the facility, therefore minimizing the amount of energy to heat or cool the building. Standard occupied ventilation rates typically call for air to be refreshed 12 times per hour. JAX Genomic Medicine’s Aircuity system is so effective that laboratory air only has to be refreshed four times per hour, an energy savings of 66% compared to standard control systems.
Other energy efficiency measures include pipe and duct insulation, energy saving light bulbs and occupancy sensors, high efficiency air handling and control systems, and customized water cooling technology.
“JAX Genomic Medicine is a great example of how commercial and industrial customers achieve bottom line savings, even before the shovels hit the ground on a new construction project,” said Enoch Lenge, energy efficiency spokesperson at Eversource.
The last day to complete the I2SL benchmarking survey is May 15th. Click here to take the brief survey and help ensure the next version of this helpful tool is tailored to the needs of today’s industry professional. Input from all is welcomed!
The Traccel® brand of products are designed specifically for life science facilities and can easily accommodate changes in airflow demands, reduce future HVAC renovation costs, maintain the environmental integrity of a research facility, and help earn the points to achieve an organization’s LEED goals.
Controlling these factors contributes directly to your operating margins, reducing risk and lowering facility costs. If there is one constant factor within the life science industry, there will be change. Change to accommodate new research or a new faculty member. It is essential to make the smart choices in facility mechanical design now, so that costs of change are less in the future.
Advantages and Benefits
Flexibility
Less testing, adjusting and balancing (TAB) means faster commissioning–Phoenix Controls venturi valves meter flow and don’t measure flow. Devices that measure flow, like a terminal box, must typically be field characterized for the installation condition. Imagine commissioning a new or reconfigured HVAC system by just turning the fans on. TAB is virtually eliminated with venturi valves.
Integrates easily with LonTalk® or BACnet® networks–Traccel® is offered in a LonMark®-certified or BTL BACnet®-certified controller and seamlessly plugs into the open LON or native BACnet network.
Pressure-independent operation–Design up to 30% shorter duct runs throughout the HVAC system. Traccel valves operate accurately even with short or angled duct sections. Precise airflow delivery rate is never compromised when there are changes in static pressure. Use the Traccel-TX Shut-off Valve option to eliminate the need for extra dampers and controls to isolate the mechanical ductwork.
Shut-off capability–In life sciences, needs for gaseous decontamination or HVAC isolation are not always considered during the planning stage. Planning a valve up front that can control airflow precisely with low-leakage shut-off can save thousands of dollars.
Operational Costs
Energy Conservation
High turndown ratios saves energy–The design of the venturi valve body and cone assembly means higher turndown ratios than a traditional VAV terminal box–up to 20:1 versus 3:1. With better accuracy, you are saving energy with lower air volume and it will not compromise room pressurization.
Reduced Maintenances Costs
No flow sensors means no maintenance – All venturi valves are characterized for their full flow range at the factory, with a 48-point flow table loaded onto the controller. This means there are no flow sensors to clean, ever.
Fewer controllers per room – The Traccel controller provide a full electronic platform to control temperature and monitor humidity and pressure, eliminating the need for additional controllers in the space.
Tiered control platforms (TP, TX, SO/EO) – There are many different applications within a life science facility. Having a choice of three control schemes (TP, TX, and SO/EO) allows you to distribute costs and value where it is required, such as the demanding decontamination applications versus less demanding conference rooms and office spaces adjacent to the labs.
No flow sensors means no maintenance – All venturi valves are characterized for their full flow range at the factory, with a 48-point flow table loaded onto the controller. This means there are no flow sensors to clean, ever.
Fewer controllers per room – The Traccel controller provide a full electronic platform to control temperature and monitor humidity and pressure, eliminating the need for additional controllers in the space.
Tiered control platforms (TP, TX, SO/EO) – There are many different applications within a life science facility. Having a choice of three control schemes (TP, TX, and SO/EO) allows you to distribute costs and value where it is required, such as the demanding decontamination applications versus less demanding conference rooms and office spaces adjacent to the labs.
Applications
The Traccel® controllers and venturi valves are designed specifically for collaborative Life Science facilities. These facilities are typically anchored by an open bench lab with support alcoves that house various types of fume hoods, state of the art equipment or animal holding spaces. All these spaces together require a stable, accurate airflow control system that only a venturi valve can offer. Even adjacent support lab spaces such as equipment rooms and microscopy rooms or even conference rooms, offices and corridors may seem less critical in precisely controlling airflow. But in reality, every adjacent space to a lab space affects the ventilation and stability throughout the building.
For those Life Science facilities that need a controller to accommodate a more complex control scheme or meet the demands of a high speed VAV fume hood, the Celeris control system is a perfect fit. The Celeris system is a platform designed to provide a safe and comfortable work environment while managing a complex ventilation control scheme. With platform flexibility offered in Traccel, Celeris or a combination of both, the airflow demands for all styles of Life Science research facilities are covered.
Nailor Model ‘AUNI2’ Square Plaque Ceiling Diffusers have been specially designed to provide both the unobtrusive appearance required for architectural excellence and engineering performance. The diffuser delivers a tight 360° radial horizontal pattern allowing high turn down ratios with no dumping. The AUNI2 diffusers provide stable diffusi
supply HEPA/ULPA filtered air to a critical environment and are intended for use in cleanroom applications such as microelectronics, pharmaceutical, biotechnology as well as aerospace manufacturing/assembly and laser/optic industries.
welded to ensure a consistent, rigid, clean and relatively leak free design to verify the specified efficiency and leakage to meet the most stringent of current leakage tests. Each unit is PAO Scan Tested to IEST-RP-CC034.3 Standard to ensure leakage is
Currently a big focus of all SUNY locations and SUNY System Administration is to meet Build Smart NY’s executive Order 88. The Governor’s Order mandates a 20 percent improvement in the energy efficiency performance of State government buildings by April 2020. Lab buildings are typically the most energy intensive spaces on campus and the university needed a way to address the energy use in these spaces, while still maintaining a healthy facility for occupants.
As a founding member of the American College and University Presidents’ Climate Commitment, Arizona State University’s (ASU) president committed to becoming carbon neutral by 2025. The university launched a campus-wide carbon reduction initiative and identified buildings, for their large amount of energy consumption as an important part of their plan.
The HVAC system capacity also was reduced significantly for MIST, resulting in upfront cost savings. Even more importantly, the lower energy requirements reduced the size of the photo-voltaics needed to run the buildings and achieved a near net-zero result for the site. The demand-based control, even with the impact of the other energy savings approaches, saved about 9,000 megawatt hours for the whole project, or about four megawatts of solar capacity—roughly $20 million of first cost, according to Sharp.
would bring us back to carrying people in litters rather than using wheels. Certainly it would be simpler and more economical to build litters than automobiles and jets.
and blower efficiency both increase as the motor rpm and airflow are decreased, the owner or user pays lower utility bills while the equipment provides a superior environment and lower sound levels.
Ideal for use in hospitality, condominiums and an excellent retrofit choice; the 41V Series will initially be available in concealed and exposed chassis. The exposed chassis will offer both a traditional and sloped top arrangement.
up to 12 Air Changes per Hour (ACH). This means that in each hour, the entire volume of air in the lab is completely replenished with clean air 12 times. Depending on how sophisticated the HVAC controls are, as well as the occupant work schedule of the lab, facility managers can program the building’s HVAC system to operate at the minimum rate (four ACH) when the building is unoccupied, and raise it to the needed ventilation rate when the building is in use. More advanced HVAC control systems can adjust ventilation rates based on indoor air quality using real-time, zone level data. This means that ventilation rates can increase when contaminants are detected in the air, and decrease when the indoor air quality is high. This can significantly reduce energy consumption while still maintaining a safe work environment at all times. When considering retrofit and retrocommissioning options in a lab building, financial decision makers should first start with HVAC systems for a cost effective energy efficiency upgrade.
times we simply respond to complaints and when there aren’t any, we assume the system is working properly. Based on our extensive experience in engineering, servicing, commissioning and re-commissioning labs, we know that serious operational problems affecting airflow, safety and energy efficiency can be present even though occupants are not complaining. Whether your laboratory is relatively new or decades old, a periodic review of your airflow control systems is essential to maintaining the energy savings and safety of the system. Metropolitan Equipment Group will take the time to understand your needs and develop a plan with the entire team to recommission the system to realize the energy savings potential and bring safety back to the forefront.
fume hood re-certification isn’t enough. Though fume hood re-certification is important, it doesn’t provide the complete inspection, testing and verification of your laboratory airflow control system and comprehensive documentation of results and recommendations that RCx does. It also doesn’t identify energy saving opportunities that, when implemented, typically save our clients 15-20% a year in energy costs.
Case Study – Baptist Health Lexington:
Product Features:
Less testing, adjusting and balancing (TAB) means faster commissioning–Phoenix Controls venturi valves meter flow and don’t measure flow. Devices that measure flow, like a terminal box, must typically be field characterized for the installation condition. Imagine commissioning a new or reconfigured HVAC system by just turning the fans on. TAB is virtually eliminated with venturi valves.