In the bubble with Panasonic
Panasonic has worked in collaboration with architects, engineers and local crafts people to create an unfiltered, unique and comfortable luxury living experience in bubble style Domes to bring a 180-degree transparent window on nature.
Michael Beare of Finn Lough Resort in Northern Ireland is the visionary behind this unique holiday experience. He explains: “Our aim was to be able to offer holidaymakers a truly unique experience in this glorious setting, yet with minimal impact on these wonderful surroundings. We aimed to minimise the footprint of the domes, offering off grid power and heating solutions, minimal construction requirements and a design that blends into the landscape.”
Each Dome is kitted out with Panasonic Aquarea Fan Coils which are connected to air to water Panasonic Aquarea Monobloc heat pumps for quick reaction heating and cooling as well as domestic hot water. Panasonic additionally supply DX ERV units to maintain a constant air flow rate. Furthermore, each Dome can be monitored via the Panasonic Aquarea Smart Cloud technology to maintain the optimal environment for each guest.
The first Domes were created in 2015 but had several challenges such as misting up, being cold in winter and too hot in the summer
months. Beare then started discussions with Panasonic to understand and solve these issues. With continuous prototyping and testing,
the team has since adapted and improved the Dome’s comfort and experience for guests.
The Panasonic Aquarea heat pump technology was chosen for this project as the units easily adapt to extreme low temperatures (-20oC) and high temperatures, whatever the climate. The units are highly energy efficient (COP of 5.08), are compact, positioned externally to save on internal living space, quick and straightforward to install.