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RACA Journal Publication www . hvacronline . co . za benjamin @ interactmedia . co . za
RACA Journal : ISSN 1812-772X
MAINTENANCE – A CONTINUAL CONCERN
Having seen several accounts first hand coupled with general reports on maintenance challenges in the industry , this is indeed a topic that needs to be highlighted once again – particularly because so many of these sites serve masses - namely malls , hotels , hospitals , and restaurants .
It is understandable that in tough economic times HVAC system maintenance does get the back seat - to a degree - as building owners feel the crunch – but since when was the objective to run a plant or system to failure ? I ’ m quite certain this was not the objective when the engineering team took on any of those projects .
Sadly , this seems to be the case that one sees more and more out in the market , “ as the norm ”. While there are several methods to prolong any system ’ s life expectancy , such as simple mainenence and cleaning protocols , the one thing no one can really do anything about is in fact the most important – the way people think about vital tasks that fall under operational costs . Where this becomes a ten-fold ( or more ) problem is when that mindset puts a building ’ s occupants at unnecessary health risks .
As we know very well , air quality has become one of the leading concerns for general space occupants – now how much more so does this apply to buildings that cater to volumes such as hospitals , and hotels that additionally have many indoor units that need to be cleaned and serviced regularly too ( and where people believe they are “ safe ”). What do you think a solution for the local mindset on maintenance is ? It ’ s worth getting a conversation going because it shouldn ’ t be the case of always fielding the statements of , “ maintenance is too expensive ” or “ we don ’ t have a budget for better maintenance ”, or “ no one has been sick , yet ”, should it ? Proper maintenance in this sector actually means overall cost reduction which is too seldom put on the table …
In this issue we cover some local news as well as interesting international advances in terms of materials that have been developed to assist in overall building efficiency . We have our regular contributors and received the opportunity to re-publish a technical article on active chilled beams .
Our project this issue is the latest residential development in the Hyde Park suburb of Johannesburg that boasts some high-end facilities for its residents – including a heated pool and gym area sharing the same volumetric zone which provided some challenges for the team to overcome . Our feature is a high-level view on industrial heating and cooling ( also known as process heating and cooling ) and our profile is a confident and driven young woman who has taken up the challenge of becoming a training facilitator . Read more about Karabo Mazibuko on Page 25 .
This month ’ s quote I tie into the concerns around maintenance because it comes down to a mindset that needs to be changed according to many industry roleplayers .
“ Without changing our patterns of thought , we will not be able to solve the problems that we created with our current patterns of thought .” - Albert Einstein
Have a super month ahead . I welcome your engagements , so please feel free to contact me at
any time ! RACA
Ben
www . hvacronline . co . za RACA Journal I April 2022 1