More efficient heating qualifies for 25% grant
The installation of a VRF air-conditioning system with heat recovery to replace an inefficient gas-fired central-heating system qualified for a grant from the Carbon Trust for 25% of the capital cost. The system uses equipment from MHI’s KXR inverter range to provide simultaneous heating and cooling and achieves a COP of up to 3.4 in the 2-storey Stratum House, Telford.
The previous heating system tended to overheat the south-facing aspect in Winter. In addition, the same aspect also overheated in Summer, necessitating the hiring of portable air conditioners.
APT Solutions, the main tenant, approached co-tenant Eco-Electrical Contractors, which suggested the 3-pipe VRF system for its ability to cool one side of the building and use that heat to heat the other side. The equipment was supplied by MHI distributor FM Air Conditioning.
Offices on the east side of Stratum House are served by two outdoor units with a combined cooling capacity of 80 kW. They are connected to 20 indoor units with cooling/heating capacities from 2.2 to 11.2 kW.
A single 56 kW outdoor unit serves the west side of the building via 15 indoor units.
Branch controllers connect groups of up to five indoor units so all units in the group can operated in cooling or heating mode.
