Panasonic helps create new life for IKEA store

Panasonic’s gas-fired ECO G heat pumps have been used to help provide a new lease of life for a building in Birmingham that was approaching the end of its practical life. It is expected to be demolished in the next four years, but in the meantime has been refurbished to trial IKEA’s ‘Click and Collect’ store concept that is being rolled out across the country.

The city-centre site did not have sufficient electrical power to deliver heating and cooling via an electrical VRF system to both the retail area and the office area, so the Panasonic equipment was chosen for the retail area.

Distributor Logicool supplied 16 of Panasonic’s U1 4-way 90x90 cassettes. Logicool and installer TSG Electrical Services reduced the number of indoor cassettes but increased the size of the fan coils to ensure that the system provided a consistent and comprehensive heating and cooling solution without exceeding IKEA’s budget.

In the staff offices and collection and returns areas, Logicool used Panasonic’s ECOi electric VRF system to supply heating and cooling. Panasonic’s new heat-recovery control box further increases the efficiency of the system.