A third-party commissioning agent was appointed to optimise the design and ensure that commissioning of the renewable energy, hot water, lighting control, BMS, daylighting control and HVAC systems was carried out according to ASHRAE guidelines.
HVAC With HVAC being one of the largest single consumers of energy in a building, the mechanical engineers spent a great deal of time designing a system that was both efficient and also allowed for control flexibility. They chose to go with a Heat Recovery Variable Refrigerant Volume / Flow( VRV / F) system. The system included Central Outdoor Condensing Units that had a very small footprint to be sensitive to aesthetic impact on the building. The heat pump technology ensures space heating with a Coefficient of Performance( COP) of 1kW electricity for 3-4kW of heating or cooling. The VRV / F system makes it possible to achieve simultaneous heating and cooling for indoor units meaning that temperature control is entirely flexible depending on user preference. The system is 20-30 % more efficient than conventional air-cooled direct expansion split type systems.
Insulation Of course, one of the most effective ways to manage a building’ s energy consumption is to ensure that it is properly insulated. Energy models were run right at the beginning of the project’ s design phase. This was a very effective tool in understanding the effect of the local climate on different areas of the building. Double-glazing, together with air-tightness tests, were employed to ensure that the architects designed the building relative to its specific micro-climate. The end result was not only a drastically reduced load on the building’ s systems but also vastly improved comfort levels for the building’ s end-user.
Water Consumption Reducing water consumption was also critical in ensuring the overall efficiency of the building. The plumbing system is designed with low-flow fixtures and fittings which manage the volumes of water consumed by the building reducing the
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