Client: Baloos Soft Play
Value: £45k
We were recommended to Baloo’s to provide air conditioning and ventilation for their new project in Trowbridge. After having a good look around the building and listening to the requirements we arrived at some suggestions to the client. Baloo’s had already received several air conditioning quotations, but all were different and confusing. We were able to provide a quote which was clear, meet their budget as well as demonstrate that the other companies were not complying with Building Regulations which is very important.
Building Regulations
Cre8tive Interiors considers Building Regulations all the time in any refurbishment project and so understand them very well. A major consideration is Ventilation. Most air conditioning companies do not carry out this work as well as air conditioning so they do not understand how it is relevant to office and public places. Cre8tive Interiors also carries out the electrical work associated with the air conditioning and ventilation requirements, so there is no need for the customer to worry about additional trades to get everything to work. One order with us, and it works.
Equipment Locations
The outdoor units for the air conditioning system had to be located around the back of the building, out of the way. The indoor Ventilation units or VAM units, had to be located high up out of the way but also needed to be positioned in such a way that we could service the units properly. Each VAM unit has a side access panel to get to the fresh air filters.
Vam Unit
The ventilation unit provides fresh air into a space by pulling air from the outside, as well as extracting stale air from inside the building to the outside through long duct work pipes. Both incoming and outgoing air pass through the ventilation unit which filters the air. The different air temperatures cross over each other and average out, the energy is ‘recovered’. The calculations of the size of the unit depends on the number of people inside the building, another calculation is the volumetric space. Each unit is sized and calculated to meet the current regulations. The units at Baloo’s for example can exchange 1000 m3 of air per hour, so they are quite big units. One on each floor.
Challenges with the Original Building Layout
- The client did not want a suspended ceiling and wanted to keep the original beams and structural look of the building as much as possible. This presented a slight problem as the pipework would either have to go straight under the beams or go up and over them. In the end we decided that there was enough height to run straight underneath.
- We advised that an ‘industrial look’ would be absolutely fine, and we would locate all of the pipework on cable trays.
- The main VAM units would be located in one of the rooms at the back to facilitate servicing. The ground floor unit would be located in the lobby area around the side of the building, again making servicing as easy as possible.
- Budget was also a challenge. We design the system for more units and air flow but installed in this first phase the minimum that would be required with a plan to review the performance and add additional units as required. The important things were to get the equipment in the time that they wanted, and to the budget they had.
The Solutions
- We chose a new manufacturer to the UK which were cheaper actual units but offered a 10 year manufacturer’s warranty. As well as reducing the cost, it gave assurances to the client that the manufacturer is confident of their equipment enough to provide this length of warranty.
- Many local air conditioning companies offer equipment that only has a 2 year warranty because they want to tie in the client with lots of repair bills. Our main business is refurbishment work, but we service the equipment as well.
Initial site photos
As the main pipework is designed to be on view, it was very important to get everything level and square. Visually most people can tell if something is not quite straight, so the installers used lasers to check the alignment and levels.
Installation work
As the main pipework is designed to be on view, it was very important to get everything level and square. Visually most people can tell if something is not quite straight, so the installers used lasers to check the alignment and levels.
Final photographs
Below are some photos of nearly finished as well as some final photographs with the play equipment in place.
Summary on Air Conditioning and Ventilation Projects
- We can supply and install all makes but would prefer those manufacturers offering 5 years warranty or more such as Daikin, Fujitsu and Midea.
- We understand Building Regulation requirements on ventilation whereas many companies do not.
- We maintain all equipment supplied by us and offer a service and maintenance contract on all installations.
Contact
If you have any questions or need any help with air conditioning or ventilation projects please do not hesitate to get in touch 01380 73 88 44, or via email at [email protected]
