Spring into Thermal Comfort with Chilled Beam Cooling
As we leave the winter months and transition into spring, the environment around us is starting to change, temperatures begin to fluctuate and the humidity of the air starts to increase with more moisture, all alongside the allergy seasons beginning.
Outside factors affect the indoor environment, which will cause comfort issues for building occupants. Poor indoor air quality has been linked with health issues such as headaches and fatigue and general discomfort from high temperatures, that in-turn lowers your ability to concentrate, as a result this will lead to a decrease in productivity.
Recent analysis has shown that Spring is the fastest warming season in the UK with the average temperature rising by 35.24C since 1970, the main cause of this being Climate Change.
The need for an environmentally friendly and efficient HVAC solution that can handle these changing temperatures is more important than ever before.
An efficient heating and cooling solution that ticks these boxes is of course - Chilled Beams, which run on clean potable water to safely provide heating and cooling without the need for refrigerants which are harmful to the environment.
How Chilled Beams improve Indoor Air Quality (IAQ)
Chilled Beam can be utilised to help deliver sustainable buildings with high levels of Thermal Comfort, with improved Indoor Air Quality (IAQ), which is not only good for businesses but also their employees wellbeing.
The world green building council (WGBC) report, 'Health, Wellbeing & Productivity in Offices (2017)' lists many factors for creating Wellbeing, Chilled Beams can help to provide the key factors listed supporting wellbeing such as improved IAQ, optimal Thermal Comfort and low noise levels.
When it comes to IAQ, Active Chilled Beams stand out, not recirculating dirty air from ceiling voids or other building areas. All recirculated air is kept room-side, ensuring cleaner air within the occupied space.
- Reduced Airborne Contaminants: Chilled Beams rely on natural convection and radiant cooling, minimising air movement which can help reduce airborne transmission that can spread dust, allergens, and pollutants.
- Lower Humidity Levels: Help maintain optimal humidity levels indoor operating with a 'dry coil' that keeps the relative humidity at an ideal 50%. Unlike systems with 'wet coils' that can over-dehumidify, potentially increasing the spread of airborne viruses and causing discomfort, Chilled Beams prevent these issues by avoiding operation below the dew point.
- Fresh Air: Clean filter primary fresh air supply is delivered into the space via a central AHU to provide and maintain good IAQ.
- Thermal Comfort: Chilled Beams deliver low air velocities within the occupied space, so they maintain high Thermal Comfort Levels that fully comply with BS EN ISO 7730 CAT B or ASHRAE 55 Standard.
- Low Noise Levels: Chilled Beams are quieter in operation compared to other HVAC systems which can help increase occupant concentration and productivity.
Green Building Certifications
Chilled Beams present an environmentally friendly cooling solution, as they operate on clean potable water rather than refrigerants. This not only minimises their environmental impact but also enhances safety for building occupants by eliminating the risk of refrigerant leakage.
By providing a healthier indoor environment, Chilled Beams help to support green building certifications, with many of our beams been used on projects achieving certifications such as:
- BREEAM
- WELL Being Standard
- LEED
- Green Star
Conclusion
As Chilled Beam technology operates using an elevated chilled water supply, they offer a more energy efficient solution compared to other HVAC systems. In summary, by designing and using a cooling system that uses a higher supply water temperature (CHW) it provides the ability to still maintain sufficient cooling whilst reducing the chillers energy consumption by not having to work as hard and/or increase the opportunity the number of hours for free cooling.
Investing in Chilled Beam technology helps to enhance thermal comfort, energy efficiency and improve occupant health whilst providing a long life (25 yrs +) HVAC solution with lower life costs due to them contain no moving parts. The perfect solution for your HVAC projects!
You can learn more about the products FTF Group has to offer by visiting their products page or read more articles about the international projects FTF Group has supplied on their latest news page. Alternatively, you can contact their US Head Office on +1 (646) 571-2151 or sales@ftfgroup.us.