How to prioritise employee comfort
and wellbeing, whilst reducing your
carbon footprint
Nursing and care home supplier Acticare,
has ensured employee comfort and environmental
standards are met with the installation of new
cooling, heating and ventilation systems at its
new-build facility in Hereford.
Case Study
Like many office
workers, Acticare
employees are sat at
their desks for most of
the day. A fresh,
temperate working
environment can go a
long way to help
maximise workplace
productivity and was
key when considering
which systems to install
in their new two-floor
building.
Acticare Head Office, Hereford
The office areas, which were completed in December
2018, include open plan spaces, satellite offices and
meeting rooms, all of which required a solution that would
keep employees comfortable and productive at work.
The company chose the R32 Hybrid VRF system from Mitsubishi
Electric to help provide energy efficient air conditioning and meet the
buildings high environmental standards. The R32 units are designed
to deliver high operational efficiency whilst minimising the global
warming potential (GWP) of the system.
By delivering a lower GWP than current refrigerants, the R32
solution can meet both BREEAM building standards for sustainability
performance and government environmental regulations – plus future
proof against ongoing environmental legislation.
Mitsubishi Electric’s Hybrid VRF system is fundamentally different
from traditional VRF systems as it uses water throughout the majority
of its pipework to transfer simultaneous heating and cooling to
different rooms. However, it still maintains full flexibility in its design,
lower annual maintenance costs and advanced controllability.
With both a central controller (AE-200E) and individual remote
controls, employees have the power to adjust the level of heating
or cooling in individual spaces, which is particularly useful for the
satellite offices at the new site, which are not attached to the
main building.
Case Study
Maintaining a high
level of indoor air
quality is extremely
important for us, as
employees spend the
majority of their day
inside the building.
EMS made the case
for the R32 Hybrid,
working with the
Lossnay ventilation
system, and we are
looking forward to
the benefits it
will bring
Phil Boyman
Acticare
Acticare Head Office, Hereford
The system was designed and installed by Business
Solutions Partner EMS Ltd. Alan Meredith, Director at
EMS said “We like what the R32 Hybrid VRF achieves,
in particular the enhanced occupier comfort of using water
instead of refrigerant in the conditioned space, plus also
the environmental benefits of using the low GWP R32
refrigerant. The system proved easy to install and we’re
looking forward to measuring the benefits for use on
future projects”.
The use of R32 was also an important factor for Phil Boyman, Director at
Acticare, who said “One of the main considerations when choosing an air
conditioning system was how well it would future-proof the building against
changing environmental standards. The Hybrid VRF units
were able to do so by meeting current F-Gas regulations.”
The unique Hybrid VRF uses R32 refrigerant between the outdoor compressor
and an indoor Hybrid branch controller box. From here, water is used to
transfer heating or cooling to the individual indoor units throughout the
building.This removes the need for leak detection equipment within occupied
spaces and also means that Acticare can benefit from reduced maintenance
costs because there is no requirement for annual leak-detection checks.
Mitsubishi Electric’s Lossnay heat recovery ventilation units were also chosen
to work alongside the R32 Hybrid VRF systems, with the role of improving
indoor air quality. The Lossnay units supply clean, fresh air into the building,
while simultaneously extracting stale air, and recovering valuable
heat energy for maximum efficiency
