Joanna Turpin is a senior editor with the ACHR NEWS. She can be contacted at 248-786-1707 or joannaturpin@achrnews.com. Turpin has been with BNP Media since 1991, first heading up the company’s technical book division. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in English from the University of Washington and worked on her master’s degree in technical communication at Eastern Michigan University.
When Dell Children’s Medical Center of Central Texas (DCMCCT) in Austin opens its doors this month, medical professionals as well as pediatric and adolescent patients will have reason to celebrate.
Fighting past some
preconceptions (and through a few floors for new exhaust), Essex County College
supports its academic course load by handling its chiller load with a dual-fuel
retrofit. Improvements are an ongoing process at the New Jersey school, as on
any campus. While piping improvements and other projects remain, the staff knows
the newfound chiller flexibility will pay off regardless.
Led by a forward-thinking operations manager,
this Toronto shopping center implemented wholesale changes on its retail HVAC
to provide a beautiful energy budget makeover. See how the team changed
chillers and controls, upgraded pumps and drives, and “chased” rewiring options
to conserve $120,000 annually. By Joanna R. Turpin
Displaying artwork and artifacts can involve some quite
specific moisture control requirements,
but those specifics can also vary depending on the
particular exhibit. One Ohio museum employed 21st-century humidification and controls in preparation for
200-century-old Dead Sea Scrolls material. Read about that process, including
how a little antacid jump-started the system’s steam production for fast
relief.
An effective K-12 retrofit
using UFAD and displacement ventilation requires everything from load
calculations to Cheerios. Overcoming initial skepticism, these engineers have
fine-tuned their designs, figured out where architect involvement is critical,
and improved IAQ on the road to reducing energy costs throughout this Kansas
school district.
We
usually consider being close to the ocean a good thing, but such a location is
no day at the beach for mechanical equipment. Ready for some retrofits and
looking for new design options, this Florida
college embraced a frictionless chiller and upgraded its piping and cooling
towers. The result? A sea change in noise and performance.
From earthquakes to upgrades, the home of the Washington State Legislature has seen a lot of activity in recent years. The rumblings kickstarted the retrofit process, and the resulting improvements have represented a tectonic shift in the overall systems' capabilities. Check out the myriad of chilled water improvements across the Capitol campus, plus the savings that no longer falls through the cracks.
Optimum Manufacturing Corp. is a very precise machine shop that specializes in complex, critical-tolerance components, CNC jig boring, and parabolic mirror housings. Using the most modern and precise machines, the company manufactures optical housings, mirror blanks, and optics-related prototypes for customers serving a wide range of industries such as aerospace, scientific, medical, communications, and defense.
A coal degasification plant used to stand in this space. Then it was an abandoned, contaminated lot. The transformation to a new 12-story biotechnology headquarters with a Platinum LEED rating took a substantial amount of design creativity and about $140 million. Lithium bromide chillers, free cooling, redirected sunlight, adjusting setpoints and fan speeds on cooling towers, and integrated life safety are just a few of the distinguishing elements of a sustainable project with many positive after-effects.
In a move sure to get the attention of other high-pollution areas, some California districts are adjusting boiler emissions requirements. Some facilities face retrofits in order to comply. Get the details on the scope of the more stringent rules, the low-fuel exemption, and the consequences for common multi-boiler applications like hospitals.