Heal’s building is kitted out with Panasonic gear
The newly refurbished Heal’s building on Tottenham Court Road in London includes a heating and cooling systems from Panasonic to serve office spaces spread over five storeys. Occupants include Netflix and Deliveroo. Consultants Cundall worked with Easy Air Conditioning on the design and installation of the systems.
During three phases of work, Easy Air Conditioning installed 24 VRF systems comprising 42 heat-recovery and heat-pump condensing units. Each system is controlled by a Panasonic CZ-256ESMC2 touchscreen controller and integrated into the site’s building-management system.
The floor-to-ceiling heights in the Heal’s Building are lower than normal for a modern office building due to its heritage as a furniture factory. Horizontal slimline ceiling-mounted units from the MM range were installed.
The architect did not want to install a false ceiling due to the lack of height, which meant that cold air from the outlet diffusers could flow straight down onto people below. Metal plates were therefore installed under the units around the outlet diffusers to create a Coanda effect to encourage the cool air at 12°C, slightly warmer than a regular cooling system, to flow out horizontally.
Without a false ceiling, the units, trunking and pipes were exposed — which was embraced by the designers and incorporated into the stripped-back industrial chic design aesthetic.
There is also a large number of MR1 floor-standing units concealed discreetly in cabinets below windows to provide extra cooling around the perimeter of the building to offset the extra solar gain.
