Akaroa Health Hub

The Challenge

The client was looking for a water-based system to run the underfloor heating, fan coil units for heating and cooling and AHU’s for fresh air tempering. The small building footprint would have made a traditional 4-pipe hydronic system very expensive. Therefore, there was no economy of scale to justify the heat pump/chiller that also required additional pipework to accommodate positioning further away from the main building.

The Solution

The final system chosen was designed incorporating three key technologies.

A Mitsubishi Electric City Multi Hybrid VRF (HVRF) Hydronic Heat Recovery System connected to Ducted PEFY units was chosen to cover the heating and cooling needs of specific rooms. Because water instead of refrigerant connected the branch box to each fan coil unit, the client was able to retain the requirement for a hydronic system. As a result, the overall solution was able to be kept within the budget.

A separate hot water heat pump was used for the underfloor heating using a Y-Series Outdoor unit and PWFY Water Module that was able to be mounted within the building’s thermal envelope. As such, because water in the system no longer needs to run outside, frost risk which can impact efficient performance is minimised.

Due to the coastal location of Akaroa, Mitsubishi Electric BS units were used to provide additional sea salt corrosion protection, ensuring a longer lifespan of the outdoor units.

Mitsubishi Electric Lossnay Fresh Air Energy Recovery Ventilation was also incorporated to efficiently meet the fresh air requirements of the medical facility to ensure optimum comfort for all occupants.